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For immediate release (July 15, 2013) – As the City of Orillia continues to consider its options for policing, utmost importance has been placed on providing Council accurate information to make an informed decision.
“Council is doing its due diligence in reviewing all of the facts and figures associated with choosing the best option for policing,” said Mayor Angelo Orsi. “At a press conference today, the Commissioner of the OPP expressed concern with the accuracy of information provided to Council to make its decision. I can assure residents we are making sure all information being reviewed is factual, realistic, and in the best interest of our City.”
City of Orillia staff are in the process of reviewing conflicting information provided by MPM Consulting Inc. and the OPP to ensure accuracy on the part of both parties.
“The challenge we’re facing with the OPP is a lack of transparency in information provided to our Police Services Board and inconsistency in figures we do receive,” said CAO Roman Martiuk. “The OPP have chosen to share new information in the media before giving Council the opportunity to review it. This kind of negotiating on the part of the OPP isn’t in the best interest of the public.”
“The Police Services Board is concerned with governance and accountability in this negotiating process,” said Rick Fraracci, Chair of the Orillia Police Services Board. “The widely varying data and the OPP’s unwillingness to fully address these concerns during negotiations have resulted in an inefficient and misleading negotiation process.”
A Council Committee meeting is scheduled for Monday, July 15 at 7 p.m. in Council Chambers. City Council will review its options for policing at that time. To view the agenda for tonight’s Council Committee meeting visit http://www.orillia.ca/en/insidecityhall/currentcouncilagendas.asp. Council will hold its regular Council meeting Thursday, July 18 at 7 p.m. and the agenda will be available online Tuesday afternoon.
The City of Orillia is a city of 30,586 people in the heart of Central Ontario on the shores of Lake Couchiching and Lake Simcoe. Visit our website at orillia.ca.
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Roman Martiuk
Chief Administrative Officer
705-325-7240
rmartiuk@orillia.ca
Jennifer Ruff
Manager of Communications
705-325-8929
705-238-9209 (cell)
jruff@orillia.ca