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What Does Policing Cost Courtenay—and What Are We Paying For?

Sep 2, 2026 | Community Safety, FAQ, Fiscal Responsibility

Policing is one of Courtenay’s largest municipal expenses, making it important to understand what the City pays for RCMP services, how policing priorities are established and why public safety decisions have significant implications for taxpayers.

Public safety is one of the fundamental services residents expect from local government.

It is also expensive.

Courtenay's 2026 financial plan provides some useful context. The City's budget for police services is approximately $10.1 million in 2026, after police-related revenues, with total police expenses budgeted at approximately $10.24 million.

Those figures make policing a significant part of the municipal budget and an important part of any discussion about property taxes and service levels.

Understanding those costs also requires understanding how policing in Courtenay works.

Courtenay does not operate its own police department

Policing in Courtenay is provided by the Comox Valley RCMP detachment, which serves Courtenay, Comox, Cumberland and areas of the Comox Valley Regional District.

Courtenay funds its share of RCMP members and associated policing costs through its municipal policing contract.

As of 2026, Courtenay funds an authorized complement of 31.4 RCMP member positions. The number of officers actually working at any given time can be lower because of vacancies, transfers, leaves and other staffing factors.

Importantly, the City pays only for RCMP members who are actively providing service.

Council therefore has an important responsibility when considering police resources: ensuring the authorized staffing level is appropriate for the community while also understanding the long-term financial impact of adding positions.

Policing priorities should reflect community needs

Police resources are finite, which means priorities matter.

For 2026–2027, Courtenay Council identified five priority areas for police services:

    • road safety;
    • crime reduction focused on prolific offenders;
    • police visibility and community engagement;
    • mental health and community wellness; and
    • Indigenous relations and reconciliation.

These priorities were developed within a broader RCMP process that included consultation with municipal leaders, K’ómoks First Nation, the Comox Valley Regional District and community stakeholders.

This is important because policing is not simply a question of how many officers a community has. It is also a question of how available resources are deployed and what problems the community is asking police to address.

What do the crime statistics tell us?

Public perceptions of safety matter, but decisions about policing should also be informed by data.

Courtenay's 2025 Annual Report provides a useful snapshot.

Overall calls for police service in Courtenay decreased by two per cent in 2025, while calls in the downtown area decreased by six per cent.

Violent crime remained relatively stable, increasing by two per cent overall. Property crime increased by one per cent, while auto theft, break-and-enter and theft from vehicles declined.

Traffic enforcement activity increased by 17 per cent, including increased impaired-driving enforcement.

These numbers do not mean that every resident feels safe or that every neighbourhood experiences the same challenges.

They do provide important context.

Public-safety decisions should respond to residents' experiences while also examining what the data tells us about where problems are occurring and whether particular strategies are working.

Visibility matters

One issue residents and downtown businesses have raised consistently is police visibility.

That concern contributed to the introduction of RCMP foot patrols in Downtown Courtenay.

The program increased the visible police presence during busy periods and gave officers more opportunities to interact directly with businesses, residents and visitors.

Council subsequently requested that the downtown foot-patrol program continue during the spring and summer period.

That kind of policing has a different purpose from simply responding to emergency calls. It supports community relationships, provides opportunities for early intervention and gives officers greater familiarity with recurring issues in specific areas.

Visible policing alone cannot address every public-safety concern, but it can be an important part of a broader community-policing strategy.

Police cannot solve every community-safety problem

One of the challenges municipalities face is that many calls involving public disorder are connected to issues that policing alone cannot resolve.

Homelessness, mental-health challenges, substance use, poverty and housing instability can all contribute to situations that eventually involve police, bylaw officers, firefighters, paramedics or hospital emergency departments.

A police response may be necessary when there is a safety issue or criminal activity.

But enforcement does not create housing, provide mental-health treatment or establish long-term stability for someone experiencing homelessness.

This is why Courtenay's policing priorities include mental health and community wellness, and why public safety needs to involve more than a single municipal department or agency.

Housing, social services, bylaw enforcement, health care, community organizations and policing all have different roles.

Using the right response for the right problem can improve outcomes while making better use of expensive emergency resources.

Bylaw enforcement has a different role

Courtenay has also expanded its Bylaw Services capacity over recent years.

The City's bylaw officers now provide coverage seven days a week, generally from 8 a.m. to 5:45 p.m.

Bylaw enforcement is complaint-based and emphasizes education and voluntary compliance before escalating enforcement when necessary.

This matters because not every community concern requires an RCMP officer.

Parking, nuisance properties, property maintenance, parks issues and many other municipal matters can appropriately be handled through bylaw services.

Having the right municipal resources available helps ensure police can focus on work that requires police authority and expertise.

I will look more closely at Courtenay's approach to bylaw enforcement in a future post.

The next challenge: the RCMP detachment itself

Staffing is only one part of the policing discussion.

The existing Comox Valley RCMP detachment on Ryan Road is now more than 40 years old and faces significant deficiencies.

The building accommodates nearly 200 police personnel in approximately 1,700 square metres and also houses the North Island RCMP Operational Communications Centre.

According to information released by the City, concerns include space shortages, ageing building systems, asbestos-containing materials, lead in water pipes and seismic vulnerability.

The condition of the building has been discussed by local governments and the RCMP for more than a decade.

In February 2026, elected officials and RCMP leadership toured the newer North Cowichan detachment to better understand what a modern regional police facility could require. The City of Courtenay, Town of Comox and Village of Cumberland have since supported moving discussions forward with RCMP leadership and senior governments.

That does not mean a new facility should proceed without a clear understanding of scope, cost and funding responsibilities.

It means those questions need to be answered.

Planning before committing

A new regional RCMP detachment would be a major capital project.

Before local taxpayers are asked to fund such a facility, the participating governments need much more information.

That includes:

    • defining the operational requirements of a replacement facility;
    • understanding the expected capital cost;
    • determining how costs would be shared among participating governments and other partners;
    • identifying provincial and federal funding opportunities;
    • considering future population growth and policing requirements; and
    • evaluating the cost and risk of continuing to operate the existing facility.

This is the same financial principle that applies to other major infrastructure.

Planning is not the same thing as approving a project.

Planning gives governments the information required to make a responsible decision.

Public safety and fiscal responsibility are connected

It is easy to discuss public safety and municipal taxation as separate issues.

They are not.

Police officers cost money. Bylaw officers cost money. Fire protection costs money. Buildings, vehicles, communications systems and other emergency infrastructure all require ongoing investment.

At the same time, residents reasonably expect their community to be safe and emergency services to be available when they need them.

The responsibility of Council is to balance those expectations.

That means using data to establish priorities, making sure different services are being used appropriately, planning for infrastructure before it reaches a crisis point and understanding the long-term cost before adding permanent expenses to the municipal budget.

Public safety is an essential service.

Fiscal responsibility means making sure we provide that service effectively while remaining accountable for what it costs.

Sources & Further Reading