North Shore Community Policing expanding service with new hire

Jan 9, 2018 | 10:59 AM

KAMLOOPS — A new hire will soon allow for expanded services at the North Shore Community Policing Office.

“Basically what we’re doing is we’re adding a community policing office coordinator position,” says Police Support Services Supervisor Kevin Beeton with the City of Kamloops. “That position is going to allow more front counter support. It’s also going to allow us to assist the Kamloops Crime Stoppers Society with support for their Crime Stoppers program.”

He expects the new coordinator to be in place by mid-spring and says it will mean extended hours.

“Currently our hours are 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday to Friday and we’re closed from 12:30 to 1:30 for lunch. We are now enhancing that by going 8 to 4 continous so we’ll be open at lunch plus an extra half hour at the end of the day.”

The NSCPO is home to the City of Kamloops’ Crime Prevention Division, which works alongside the Kamloops RCMP and manages a large number of volunteers to run various crime prevention intitiatives throughout the community.

Beeton says those initiatives include Citizens on Patrol, Speed Watch, their restorative justice program and auxilliary constable program.

In addition to the new position, he says the NSCPO will undergo a facelift to the current garage bays to make room for more office space, change rooms, a forensics bay, and a dedicated space for the police dog services unit. Work should be complete by this spring.