City police are putting forward $1.4-million worth of projects in their 2020 budget.
Chief Sylvie Hauth says the second-most expensive item on the list deals with the second phase of the body camera project for their officers.
She notes the expense puts their budget over the $1.2-million target set by the city for the upcoming budget.
“For the next five years, there’s an ask of almost $350,000 to look at the five-year phase of that project to come to full fruition.”
The first stage of the body-worn camera pilot project lasted from November 2018 to April of this year.
Hauth notes they will also ask the city to approve $186,000 for training equipment and their shooting range.
She says the Nolalu firing range where officers must re-take firearms training every year is not up to snuff, and was in desperate need of upgrades.
“There are some difficulties just in terms of drainage,” Hauth explains, pointing out that officers sometimes train in ankle-deep mud during their annual re-certification. “There are issues with the configuration of the range itself, and it’s in really desperate need of upgrades to meet our current standards for a range where we shoot to re-qualify.”
Another high-priority item is $50,000 for the next phase of the Next Generation 911 project, which lets residents contact 911 dispatchers via text message.
Thunder Bay Police have already met the first stage, which rolled the service out to registered users who are hard of hearing.
“What they are trying to roll out now into 2020 is text to 911 [for] everyone, which entails, obviously, some upgrades in terms of infrastructure, software, hardware.”
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission regulates telephone and other communications providers.
It requires that the equipment for Next Generation 911 service be in place by June 30, 2020.
