Surrey, BC: The One Surrey plan to train 200 so-called community safety officers just got even more expensive, due to an apparent last minute policy change in the final days of the Surrey election campaign.

During a live radio debate this morning, candidate Barinder Rasode said these proposed officers would be trained like BC’s Sheriffs – a higher level of training and responsibility than first indicated.

“Her initial $8 million plan was already underfunded, but now it’s even worse,” said Surrey First mayoral candidate Linda Hepner. “BC Sheriffs make about $54,000 a year, so 200 community safety officers would cost $10.8 million in salary alone in order treat them fairly, never mind additional costs like training, uniforms, operational costs and benefits. But what really astounds me is that the platform is suddenly shifting on the fly at the last minute, as her plan comes under scrutiny. At Surrey First we have committed to a firm, well thought out platform that has been fully researched and costed. We stand by it, and our record, as we head into Saturday’s election.”

The complete Surrey First platform may be seen here

48% of decided voters favour Hepner for Mayor

Surrey, BC (Nov 10, 2014): With less than a week to go in the City of Surrey election, Linda Hepner’s lead on Doug McCallum is widening, according to a telephone poll conducted between October 30 and November 8, 2014 by Innovative Research Group – the polling firm that successfully called close elections in Alberta and Ontario.

600 respondents were asked who they would choose to be mayor:

• 48 per cent of decided voters responded they would vote for Linda Hepner of Surrey First
• 32 per cent would vote for Doug McCallum
• 19 per cent said they would vote for Barinder Rasode

The results put Hepner 16 points ahead of McCallum, doubling the lead reported in a poll by the same firm three weeks ago.

“Telephone polls like these tend to be more accurate than online polls, and the spread among the candidates is becoming well established now,” said pollster Greg Lyle of Innovative Research. “While there are still a good number of undecided voters, the undecided is down 10 points from our earlier poll and it appears Councillor Hepner and Surrey First have picked up those voters.  The candidate favourable ratings show little reason to expect a major change in the last few days.   Given our previous poll three weeks ago showed a good number of residents feeling good about the direction their city is taking, it’s not surprising to see that translate into support for the incumbent team.”

The poll is considered to be accurate +/-3.99%.

For a detailed look at the poll, please click here

With a population of 510,000, Surrey is BC’s second-largest and fastest growing city, projected to surpass Vancouver in population by 2021. By 2041, Surrey is projected to grow by 50% to 750,000 larger than Vancouver is today.

However, Surrey only has 6km of rapid transit, or 8% of the region’s transit service.

A Light Rail Transit system would build transportation capacity for Surrey’s growing population with the capacity to move 20,000 people an hour, easing congestion with its dedicated lanes, reducing pollution with its electrically powered street-cars, connect communities south of the Fraser and create pedestrian-friendly neighbourhoods with new developments and businesses. LRT has the support of the Mayors’ Council of Regional Transportation as well as business groups, with 72% of developers saying in a recent survey that the presence of LRT would favourably influence their decision to invest in Surrey. Furthermore, studies have shown that office space near rapid transit had a 3% vacancy rate, while offices without access to rapid transit had a 25% vacancy rate.[1] LRT systems are already in place in Calgary and Edmonton and underway in Ottawa, Brampton-Mississauga, Kitchener-Waterloo, Hamilton and Toronto.

Surrey’s Rapid Transit Vision would be composed of three main components:

• Phase 1 – 10km L-Line which connects Surrey City Centre to Guildford in 10 minutes along 104 Ave and City Centre to Newton in 15 minutes along King George Boulevard.
• Phase 2 – 17km Surrey-Langley Line from Surrey City Centre to Fleetwood in 14 minutes, and Langley in in 27 minutes along Fraser Highway.
• The system would also include Bus Rapid Transit from Newton down to White Rock.

The capital cost of this system would be $2.2 billion, with a $39 million annual operating budget.

The LRT System would provide frequent and reliable service, arriving every 5-6 minutes, have more frequent stops more closely spaced allowing for greater connections to local businesses and community amenities with 195,000 additional people within walking distance to rapid transit. Being at ground level, it would ease use for seniors, young children, and those with wheelchairs and be integrated with Skytrain service at City Centre. By 2041, there would be a daily ridership of 166,000. [1] A Translink-funded study that compared 1,000 route and technology combinations and between Skytrain, LRT and rapid buses found that this model met the forecast 2041 demand on all three corridors, provided the greatest extent of rail transit service and is the most consistent with Surrey’s urban development aspirations. It also provided time savings in travel time, supported land use intensification as well as other benefits.

Complementing the LRT system is the new Traffic Management Centre at its nerve centre in City, which is the centre piece of the Intelligent Transportation System (ITS). Already in operation and the most advanced of its kind in Canada, it utilizes 250 Closed Circuit Television cameras (CCTV) to monitor traffic on city streets allowing for traffic flows to be adjusted in real-time by adjusting the 340 Surrey traffic lights. This will ensure that city streets are used to their capacity most efficiently and reducing unnecessary bottlenecks. Additionally, a new traffic interchange on Highway 99 and 152^nd Street will address a major traffic bottleneck.

A partnership with the UBC Engineering is developing predictive technology to monitor traffic incidents on Surrey streets to highlight where problem areas cluster. This will allow city engineering to proactively improve street safety, along with new technology the city is installing to monitor pedestrian traffic and adjust signal lights to ensure the safety of pedestrian crossing at intersections. This will be particularly helpful to seniors and those with disabilities who often cross at a different pace than the average resident.

FINANCING

Every year the City of Surrey contributes $144 million to Translink:

• $64,500,000 in TransLink fuel tax
• $39,800,000 in property tax
• $36,500,000 in fares
• $15,500,000 in federal gas tax
• $4,000,000 in Hydro levies

Despite this, Surrey has experienced zero expansion in rail rapid transit in the past two decades. In June 2014, Metro Vancouver approved a $7.5 billion, 10-year transit plan that includes the rapid transit vision for Surrey. However, this is dependent on the 2015 Metro Vancouver transportation referendum passing.

Surrey First recognizes that a Light Rail Transit system combined with expanded rapid buses is a no-fail mission for the residents of Surrey, and we cannot leave our future to the mercy of the referendum. While Surrey First is committed to lobbying on behalf of a positive referendum vote, contingency planning will be put in place to ensure that Surrey’s rapid transit vision happens one way or another.

In March 2014, the federal government launched the New Building Canada Fund, a $14 billion infrastructure program to finance programs of national and regional significance. To be eligible, projects must have broad public benefits and contribute to long-term economic growth and prosperity. Clearly, the Surrey Rapid Transit Vision meets this standard in the most compelling way possible, therefore Surrey First will begin work immediately after the election on a business case to be presented to the New Building Canada Fund.[1]

In addition, Surrey First will examine the opportunities to bring in private sector investors to help finance the project. The Waterloo and Edmonton Light Rail Transit programs were both P3 projects, bringing government and the private sector together in partnership, transferring much of the risk and financing over to the private sector, and proving that LRT in Canadian communities is a viable option.[2]

[1] http://www.infrastructure.gc.ca/plan/nbcf-nfcc-eng.html

[2] http://www.p3canada.ca/en/about-p3s/project-map/edmonton-light-rail-transit-system/

http://infrapppworld.com/2013/03/three-teams-shortlisted-for-waterloo-light-rail-p3-project.html

[2]

[1] http://www.translink.ca/en/Plans-and-Projects/Rapid-Transit-Projects/Surrey-Rapid-Transit-Study.aspx

[2] http://www.translink.ca/~/media/documents/plans_and_projects/rapid_transit_projects/srt/alternatives_evaluation/surrey_rapid_transit_study_ alternatives_analysis_findings.ashx

Hepner Leads McCallum and Rasode Among Decided Voters

Surrey, BC (October 20, 2014): The research company that successfully called close elections in Alberta and Ontario says Surrey First mayoral candidate Linda Hepner leads Doug McCallum and Barinder Rasode among decided Surrey voters, and that 73 per cent of voters believe their city is better today than it was nine years ago.

Innovative Research Group’s Greg Lyle said his firm’s survey puts Linda Hepner at 40 per cent support among decided voters, McCallum at 33 and Rasode at 22.  The telephone poll, which took place October 6-12, also said that reducing crime was the most important issue at 36 per cent, followed by keeping property taxes low at 16 per cent. Other issues included reducing traffic congestion, more open government, reducing spending and attracting jobs. The survey noted that about one-third of Surrey voters are undecided.

Commissioned by Surrey First, the Innovative Research survey also has Linda Hepner leading McCallum and Rasode in terms of “net favorable” results, with Rasode coming out ahead of McCallum in this important category. The “favourable” question asks voters to rate candidates on a scale ranging from strongly favourable to strongly unfavourable. Linda Hepner has a net favourable rating among Surrey voters of 25 per cent, Rasode has 15 per cent and McCallum has just 2 per cent. After nine years in office, outgoing Surrey First Mayor Dianne Watts has a net favourable rating of 63 per cent.

“Dianne Watts’ legacy in Surrey is a big factor among voters because people feel good about her and their city,” said Lyle. “One of the most interesting things about the race in Surrey is just how many voters like the direction their city is taking, and how much they tie that feeling to their outgoing mayor and the team she’s led.”

Lyle also expressed concerns about the recent online poll that put McCallum ahead in the mayoralty race, saying online polls also predicted the NDP would win big in British Columbia’s last provincial election.

“Relying on online surveys for elections is risky, and their failure to get it right was highlighted in British Columbia during the last provincial election,” noted Lyle, who polls nationally for major Canadian media outlets. “We pioneered the use of online polls in Canadian elections during the 2006 federal election and they can be useful, but we are careful to validate online results with telephone surveys to verify the reliability of the online sample. The industry’s own professional association notes that ‘Online survey participants are self-selected, meaning that a margin of sampling error cannot be calculated or quoted for online panel research studies. Using margin of sampling error to describe the accuracy of online polling is misleading, and prohibited under MRIA’s Code of Conduct.’”

Surrey, BC (Oct 2, 2014) – If Barinder Rasode’s public safety platform looks familiar, it’s because it is.

It’s called the Surrey Crime Reduction Strategy which has been in place since 2007, is almost 90 per cent complete and was developed with input from more than 100 community agencies and organizations. The only real difference is that Rasode’s version will spend $8 million to put 200 well-intentioned, but inexperienced, citizens on the street, creating a danger to themselves and the community.

“I really had to look at her plan twice to see what, if anything, was different from our existing crime prevention strategy that is already in place and well on its way to being completed as we speak,” noted Hepner. “In addition, the public safety liaison position she mentions is something that’s already in the works. The City Manager and the chief of police in Surrey are already working on final details regarding the position, in order to coordinate public safety under one umbrella.  I’ve also had discussions with the chief of police regarding the establishment of a devoted petty crime unit, to deal with those crimes that negatively impact people and communities.”

“It takes $140,000 to hire, train and equip an RCMP officer. $8 million works out to hiring people at minimum wage, and doesn’t cover the associated operating costs for each officer,” added Councillor Tom Gill, chair of the city’s finance committee. “That’s not professional policing, and it’s not what we need.”

Hepner said Rasode’s plan to hire 200 so-called community safety officers/security guards is dangerous, and takes resources away from professional policing.

“The ideas put forward by Councillor Rasode are little more than the regurgitation of our current award winning policies,” Hepner adds. “She was the chair of the city’s Police Committee for three-and-a-half years, with little accomplished under her watch. There was an inability to work with the professionals, the RCMP, that put their lives on the line every day for us. Mayor Watts eventually relieved her of those duties, and that’s when improvements finally started to happen. Why would we believe she has all the answers now?

“Today we have 768 police officers in Surrey, with another 30 on the way this year. Our district police model is working, and I’m committed to extending that by adding another 100 officers on the ground over the next 24 months. Today, we’re spending $123 million on policing, that’s $54 million more than in 2005, and we’ll continue to invest what it takes to keep our city safe.”

Hepner said Surrey needs real police, not the inexperienced citizens Rasode would put on city streets, individuals who could become a danger to themselves and the community.
“The people she’s talking about are not trained police officers,” noted Hepner. “They have no more authority to do anything than you or me, and with just a few weeks of very basic training, Policing is serious business and it needs to be handled by professionals. That’s why I want more police, and I want them now, and I want them on the ground in the communities they serve”

Hepner also said it’s critical that the city, province and federal government work with the city and community to tackle the root causes of many crimes, because policing alone isn’t enough. She says re-establishing a facility to care for people with mental health difficulties is a priority, in an effort to address the root causes of crime.

“Ask any police officer in the country and they’ll tell you that on many days they feel more like a social worker than a police officer,” said Hepner. “Mental illness, addiction, poverty and homelessness are common threads in the lives of many criminals. In fact, it is the same in every city, big or small, right across the province and the country. If we don’t deal with those issues by working with the community and the other levels of government, our courts simply become a revolving door. So, when I hear someone say they’ve got a simple solution to public safety, I say there’s no such thing. It may not be the political answer, but it’s the truth, and I think that’s what our citizens want to hear. Anyone who wants to be mayor of Surrey and says they’ve got a simple solution to policing, crime and public safety isn’t being honest with our citizens.”

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SURREY, BC (SEPT 9, 2014): Policing and public safety have never been bigger priorities, said Surrey First Mayoral candidate Linda Hepner. “Today our per capita annual spending on policing and public safety is over $260, compared to just $92 under Doug McCallum.”

Hepner said McCallum’s plan to fund new policing by selling off the successful Surrey City Development Corporation makes absolutely no sense.

Hepner said Surrey First’s city-wide crime prevention strategy is over 90 per cent complete, or underway, with crime down significantly when compared to McCallum’s time at city hall, when he had the lowest per capita spending on policing in the country.

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