A Burnaby councillor’s motion to explore the possibility of moving the RCMP’s provincial headquarters from Surrey to Burnaby got a tepid response from his colleagues on council this week.
At a public meeting Monday, Coun. Mike Hillman moved that the city reach out to Deputy Commissioner Dwayne McDonald through Mayor Mike Hurley to discuss moving the E Division headquarters to Burnaby since the City of Surrey is parting ways with the RCMP, a change that will make Burnaby RCMP the biggest detachment in the country.
Hilllman’s motion would also have directed staff to launch consultations with Burnaby RCMP, local residents and “other relevant stakeholders” about a long-term vision to replace and expand Burnaby RCMP's current facilities “and ideally to relocate the RCMP’s ‘E’ Division Headquarters in Burnaby.”
He noted Burnaby RCMP’s current facilities are in need of “substantial upgrades” or replacement.
Hurley, however, said there was still “a lot of memory” about what it cost to build the 14200 Green Timbers Way facility in Surrey, which was completed in December 2012 at a cost of nearly $1 billion.
“What would be the benefits to Burnaby in bringing something like that here?” Hurley asked
Coun. Sav Dhaliwal questioned whether the RCMP would even want to move its headquarters here, while Coun. Pietro Calendino dismissed the idea as a “pipe dream.”
Councillors Dan Johnston and Alison Gu both said the money would be better spent on the Burnaby RCMP.
Coun. Colleen Jordan, however, said now would be a good time to look into what the RCMP’s long-term vision was for the province for the next 20 or 25 years.
In the end, council passed an amended version of Hillman’s motion, which said E Division may be looking locate some of its services elsewhere as it expands and that staff should come back with a report that “addresses both the growing facility needs and a long-term vision” for the Burnaby RCMP detachment.
Calendino and Gu voted against the amended motion.
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