Police resources were the topic of the Ministère de la Sécurité Publique meeting this past week — the Town of Brome Lake is requesting to be included in the regional police service area of Bromont.
Brome Lake has not had a local police force since 2001. For the past nineteen years, Brome Lake has been patrolled by the Sûreté du Québec (SQ), Quebec’s provincial police force. Due to the provincial force's high demand, and large regions to patrol, there are rare patrol cars seen in the town of Knowlton.
The municipal project is titled “Police dessert in the Town of Brome Lake project" ("Projet de desserte policière dans la ville de Lac Brome"). It is requesting the municipal region of Brome Lake be added to the region patrolled by the police service of Bromont. Bromont currently has their own police force (the "SPVB").
“The municipal region patrolled by the SPVB is currently 114.10 km squared with a population of 10,167 citizens. Adding the region of Brome Lake would increase the area by 223.6 km squared plus the population of 5,595 people,” explained Gilbert Arel, director general of Town of Brome Lake.
The cost of using the SQ is a significant portion of the town's budget. For 2020, the total cost for the services of SQ to work in Brome Lake was $1,967,020 which is roughly $351.57 per citizen. For comparison, if the Town of Brome Lake joined the region police area of Bromont, the annual cost would be decreased to $1,584,389 total or $283.18 per citizen.
“The Town of Brome Lake has the lowest crime rates in the area, especially compared to our neighbouring towns of Cowansville and Farnham,” stated Richard Burcombe, mayor of Brome Lake and a retired police officer who worked for 32 years.
Mayor Burcombe also mentioned from his experience as a former police officer, that the “SPVB have a good reputation in the region.”
Not having police present in the town at all times of the night, in particular, worries some citizens.
A survey conducted in 2018 revealed the following data:
60 per cent of citizens in the Town of Brome Lake were happy with the services of the SQ
90 per cent of Bromontois were happy with the service of the SPVB
67 per cent of citizens of the Town of Brome Lake would prefer the service of the SPVB
78 per cent of Bromontois want to share the SPVB with the Town of Brome Lake
“We are not happy with the service we receive from the SQ. We pay but never have a cop car in town waiting,” said Burcombe.
In addition, the Town of Brome Lake suggested that the economies of both towns (Bromont and Brome Lake) will benefit.
Decreased police presence is not only an issue in the Town of Brome Lake; it is a larger issue experienced by most towns in the MRC. More information about this project will be released soon following the discussions of the Ministère de la Sécurité Publique.
Here is Gilbert Arel and Mayor Richard Burcombe (audio in French only):