Police may share cost of new HQ security barriers with other city departments

The Winnipeg Police Service hopes other city departments will help cover the tab for building permanent security barriers around its new headquarters.

Cost of replacing temporary concrete barriers with permanent bollards pegged at $1.9M

Bartley Kives CBC News Posted: Sep 09, 2016 6:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: September 9, 2016

The Winnipeg Police Service's new headuarters is protected right now by temporary concrete barriers. The cost for a permanent fix has been pegged at $1.9 million. (CBC)

The Winnipeg Police Service hopes other city departments will help cover the tab for building permanent security barriers around its new headquarters.

On Friday, the Winnipeg Police Board will scrutinize the police's second-quarter financial report, which forecasts a $6.5-million year-end deficit caused in part by additional costs associated with the city's new police headquarters.

The report also makes reference to some police-HQneedsthat will require even more money to address.

"Some bigger issues, that were identified prior to the move, still exist and need to be addressed," the report states.

Supt. Scot Halley said one of those issues is the need to replace concrete Jersey barriers that were placed around the buildingwith apermanent form of protection from drive-up motor-vehicle attacks. The pricetag for erecting bollards around the building, for example, was projected to be $1.9 million last year.

Winnipeg police headquarters price tag will rise again

Halley said while there is no money in the police budget to address those issues, the service hopes to work with other city departments for example,public works and planning, property and development to see whether the security measures could be combined with other downtown projects.

For example, bollards or other security measures could be erected as part of downtownstreetscaping or the creation of new protected bike lanes. Halley said while the policewould be fine with bikes riding down a protected lane between the headquarters and a physical security barrier,it would be premature to say a new bike lane is on the table.

The other city departments will determine what is cost-effective based on their own needs, he said, adding there is no rush to replace the existing concrete Jersey barriers.

"Frankly, not all the work has to be done at once," he said.

The city is in the midst of planning an expansion of downtown cycling infrastructure.

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