Cambridge council votes to hire mobile security team
Posted Feb 15, 2024 06:00:00 AM.
Last Updated Feb 14, 2024 05:47:22 PM.
Cambridge city council unanimously agreed to hire five full-time security guards with a vehicle to improve community safety.
A guard will be available 24/7 throughout the year to respond to different incidents as they occur.
“We’re seeing vandalism of storefronts in our core areas, we’re seeing vandalism of park property, of city property,” said City Clerk Danielle Manton. “So, having this mobile team that would be patrolling throughout the various core areas and on city properties and facilities, we believe will make a big impact on what we’re currently seeing in terms of vandalism and damage.”
The net financial impact of the mobile team will be $151,000 with a one-time amount of $96,000.
City staff reported that money will be saved from having staff respond to issues after-hours as well from the costs of cleaning up vandalism or damage.
“This is a small price to pay for taking care of our community, keeping it safe, and keeping it clean,” Mayor Jan Liggett said. “It will also free up our by-law officers to do some of the other things they should be doing, but they can’t be doing, because they’re doing things that other levels of government should be doing.”
The report on the issue provided by city staff specifically noted an “increase in complaints and issues surrounding our unhoused populations.” However, Coun. Scott Hamilton said the measure is not targeting the unhoused population.
“This is not a motion targeting the entire unhoused population. This is not a comment towards people experiencing homelessness,” said Hamilton. “This is when there are incidents of violence when there are alarms set off, when there is criminal activity.”
The security team will not be able to make arrests, but speaking on the Mike Farwell Show on CityNews 570 on Wednesday, Coun. Ross Earnshaw explained how it will help nonetheless.
“I envisage that it would be possible for a complaint to be reacted to more or less immediately, and the perpetrators might in fact be apprehended. That would permit better enforcement of that particular by-law.”
The motion was a part of the 2024 budget.
