City of Red Deer

What do you do if you find this?

Published

3 weeks ago

A Red Deer Resident was shocked and saddened to find a mess of needle debris on a popular walking trail Thursday afternoon. Laura Anderson came upon this scene on the path system in her Bower neighbourhood about 2:30 Thursday. She took a couple of photos so she could show her son what to look for and educate him on how dangerous needles are. Laura says her 8 year old son uses this path virtually everyday.

If you find needles, there is a correct protocol to follow. You can find this information posted on the City of Red Deer website….

Found Needles

Discarded needles are a problem for many cities, and Red Deer is no exception. The City acknowledges the work of community agencies who provide needles to intravenous drug users, but the collection of those used needles is a challenge. The City and a number of agencies are working on the issue.

Read the Needle Disposal Guide here (pdf)

City crews regularly clean up needles to keep public places safe, and a process has been developed to help members of the public know what to do if they find a needle or other drug paraphernalia.

I found a needle. What do I do?

Always treat each needle as contaminated. You have a couple of options if you find one:

I’m too nervous to pick it up or I am unequipped to pick it up.
- Cover or mark the needle with an object.
- Call 403-342-8238 for disposal.
I’m willing and equipped to pick it up.
- I have gloves, tongs or pliers, and a hard sharps container (or plastic bottle with lid).
  - Needle pickup kits are available at your nearest fire hall.
- Put on latex, rubber or leather gloves. Use tongs or pliers to carefully pick up needle with tip pointed away from you.
- Put sharps container on stable surface (do not hold it while putting needle inside). Put needle point down into the container and close lid.
- Do NOT place container in garbage. Dispose of at nearest needle disposal location:
  - Fire stations 1 (4941 46 Street), 2 (5839 67 Street) & Headquarters (4340 32 Street) have 24-hour drop boxes
  - Many pharmacies accept needles
  - Turning Point (4611 50 Avenue)
  - Brown needle drop boxes located through parks and trails
- Wash your hands and/or use hand sanitizer once you’re done

If you get pricked by a needle:

Flush the area with flowing water.
Wash the wound well with soap and warm water.
Seek medical attention for an assessment of the risk of infection and appropriate treatment.

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City of Red Deer

Building permits way down in Red Deer. Trend is worrisome

Published

4 days ago

December 4, 2019

Duane Rolheiser

From The City of Red Deer

Building permit values drop in November

Building permits were down in November, in both the number of permits issued and their values.

62 permits were issued in November with a combined value of just over $11.5 million, compared to 74 permits issued in November 2018, worth a combined $23.2 million. Year-to-date totals are sitting at just over half the value of the same period last year. January to November 2019 has seen $114.7 million in permits issued, compared to $222.4 million during the same period in 2018.

Notable permits for November include construction of shop and office space at a courier distribution centre in the Queens Business Park valued at $3.9 million, $1.2 million worth of interior renovations for Alberta Health Services administration offices at 50 (Gaetz) Avenue and 43 street, and a $708,000 permit for building a stage for Rogers Hometown Hockey.

Monthly permit statistics are available on The City’s website at: Red Deer Open Data Catalogue

City of Red Deer

Red Deer Police Review: City Council asks for more information, including transition plan information from other cities

Published

5 days ago

December 3, 2019

Duane Rolheiser

From The City of Red Deer

City Council tables Police Review

At today’s Special Council Meeting, City Council heard the Police Review report.

City Council directed to table the report to receive more information from Administration and to invite public feedback. Administration will bring back the report, with additional information, to City Council for discussion in the first quarter of 2020.

City Council requested more information on

collision centres,
auxiliary policing,
enhanced authority of Community Peace Officers,
crime mapping,
existing levels of service as outlined in the Annual Policing Plan,
deployment of officers
and use of technology (voice recorders).
Council also requested more information about salary comparators between municipal police services and the RCMP and the projected salary increases for the RCMP under unionization,
as well as transition plan information from other municipalities.
Maclean’s Most Dangerous Cities rankings from the past ten years will also be provided to Council as requested.

“Community safety is our number one priority and policing is a significant component of ensuring public safety,” said Mayor Tara Veer. “This is one of the most significant decisions City Council will make this term and the decision will not be made lightly. Today we directed Administration to bring additional information in Q1 of 2020 to inform Council’s decision, and it is imperative to allow time for public feedback.”

In November 2018, City Council directed Administration to undertake an independent review of policing services in Red Deer. The review is comprised of two parts, a Governance Review that identifies the opportunities and challenges with various policing operating models, as well as a Service Review with recommendations on enhancing services with the existing RCMP contract.

As part of the Service Review, Red Deer was compared to other cities with either RCMP contracts or their own municipal police service. The report shows that the cost of policing in Red Deer is comparable to other similar sized cities, while the Red Deer detachment has higher caseloads per full time equivalent employee.

The budget for the Police Review was approved at $200,000.