DPA questions officers’ focus

Bruce Walkinshaw - Penticton Western News Published: April 01, 2010 6:00 PM

The Downtown Penticton Association has asked the city to conduct an audit to determine if bylaw enforcement officers spend more time in the downtown core than is appropriate or fair. In a letter to council, DPA executive director Barb Haynes said that the association had received many complaints from business owners and patrons in the downtown and that the overall sentiment is that bylaw “officers are spending or have been directed to spend much of their day-to-day activities focused on the downtown core.” “According to the City of Penticton’s regulatory services, bylaw enforcement encompasses more than downtown Penticton,” wrote Haynes. “Therefore, the board of directors of the (DPA) would like to request a detailed account of activity for each bylaw enforcement officer working Monday through Saturday for the month of February to determine whether or not there is an appropriate allocation of services throughout the city of Penticton.”

Haynes told the Western News that the DPA’s board of directors suspects that bylaw officers are typically in the downtown area more than anywhere else in the city. “We know that much of that has to do with parking, because we are the only area where there is paid parking. However, that should not be a penalizing factor for the downtown core, and some of that time should maybe be spent looking at some of the other bylaws that are also on the books,” said Haynes, noting that she respected the individual enforcement officers as good civic employees and thought the issue was a general practices problem. “I think that the business community is looking to create opportunity in the downtown. And I think there is a feeling that when parking signs and regulations are the only thing we enforce as a community and there is only one area in an entire community that has those regulations, the individuals participating in that area cannot help but feel targeted.”

Coun. Dan Albas, who represents council on the DPA, said that he thinks the group has a legitimate concern. “The bylaw should be a citywide enforcement and maybe right now, due to the revenue that is generated from downtown parking, that is where a large degree of that part of our organization focuses on,” said Albas. “So, I think the association is rightly raising an issue of concern to their members and I think a lot of people are concerned that bylaws need to be universally enforced across the City of Penticton and not just in a particular area ... And I think it is always healthy for us to look and see and make sure we are being accountable to all of Penticton. “It is a complicated issue but the great thing is that the DPA is asking us for information so that we can make better decisions and I think that is perfectly reasonable. So, I am happy to work with the DPA to make sure that the perception is out there that resources are being put to the whole City of Penticton and not just in one area.”