Chatham-Kent police have more money in their auction fund than ever before and will be putting up to $3,000 of it towards a community safety initiative.
At Tuesday's Police Services Board Meeting, it was announced the auction fund had a total of $16,648, which the board agreed was more than it had ever seen in the account before.
Mayor Randy Hope asked that a few thousand be put towards a program to promote community safety. He suggested a video contest in which local students could make a short YouTube film about community safety, property crime or mental health. Hope added the top three could win a prize.
"When I see the account this high I think 'well what can we do to engage the community?'" Hope said. "It shouldn't be this high."
Hope added it was just a suggestion and asked Police Chief Gary Conn to come up with a report for something more concrete.
Conn asked for parameters regarding how much he could spend in order to make his report, which led to quite a bit of discussion. Board member and City Councilor Bryon Fluker suggested $5,000 go towards the initiative and was met with some objection from the rest of the board.
"I think that is too high," Conn said. "I was thinking somewhere between $2,000 and $3,000."
The rest of the board agreed on a $3,000 limit, which was motioned and carried.
Other ideas from the board of what to do with the money included post-secondary bursaries and promoting community safety at day camps.
The board agreed to consult the Community Safety Officers who are out in the community and can give better feedback as to what they believe needs addressing.
Conn said he would return with a report to Hope in two weeks.
