Sergeant Jagdev Uppal made his way to Port Edward council on May 12 to discuss the policing of the community and told council the RCMP will keeping a closer eye on the district as it grows.
"When Mayor Dave MacDonald talked to me about the concerns of council, I sent an email out to members telling them Port Edward is looking for an increased police presence and that it is a community we police ... my priority would be for them to come out as often as they can. Even if they don't see anything, it is always good for residents to see police cars in the area," he said, noting the Prince Rupert detachment will do what it can to keep up with demand.
"As things get busier, and we know they will get busier, is the policing going to speed up as fast? It usually takes a little bit of time for the policing service to catchup. In the meantime we are going to do the best job we can with the resources we have even if it means extra patrols are required or we need to alter our shifts or staffing a bit to address the concerns."
But, pointing to incidents she has seen of drinking and partying at the gazebo in the park, resident Andrea Shaw said the time for increased presence is now.
"We need a station out here again, we do, because it is only getting worse," she said, pointing to damage done to her home by those gathered at the gazebo recently despite a 15-minute response time by RCMP.
"They threw big rocks at my window and it is going to cost me about $700 to fix ... we need you guys out here."
Uppal acknowledged an increase in calls for service in recent months, climbing from four calls in February to 21 calls in April, but said there was no threshold number that would trigger a permanent presence in Port Edward. However, he did commit to providing council with quarterly updates on the number and types of calls received from Port Edward residents.