WRPS chief commits to re-establishing a community policing space in Wilmot Township

Galen Simmons, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Ever since the Waterloo Regional Police Service (WRPS) ceased operating out of the former New Hamburg police station building in 2019, subsequently selling off the building altogether, area residents have wondered whether the police service would re-establish a police station in Wilmot.

During a presentation by WRPS Chief Mark Crowell on the township’s 2024 crime and police statistics at Wilmot council’s July 28 meeting, Crowell told council the service is indeed committed to establishing a satellite office in the township as they seek a permanent location for a rural police station.

“We are actively seeking to reinstate the community space within Wilmot Township that once was reflected in our New Hamburg police station,” Crowell said while discussing WRPS’ rural policing strategy for Wilmot and the other townships that make up Waterloo Region. “That is our commitment to ensure we have a foothold, a place where residents can come, meet and give input as to their concerns and our policing practices across the region.

“We hope to have that solidified within 2025 and that would replicate community offices that we have in our (other) rural townships.”

Similar to the WRPS satellite office established more than a year ago at the new Bill Gies Recreation Centre in Wellesley as well as the satellite office in North Dumfries, Crowell said the police service is looking to replicate those community spaces in Wilmot and Woolwich.

“In North Dumfries and Wellesley, we have offices located in community centres,” Crowell said in response to a request for clarification from Coun. Lilliane Dunstall. “So, our commitment this year is to work with Wilmot and Woolwich as well to re-establish what that would look like in this capacity.

“We recognize that, at one point in our capital planning, we were going to build a rural policing station. We still haven’t found that magical place that meets the vast expanse of our rural communities. So, as we continue to work and build towards that – because I think it is inevitable that we’ll need to create one or two rural policing stations that are fixed brick-and-mortar establishments – we want to ensure that there’s equitable access. Our commitment this year is to identify it and, depending on the location of that community space, we want to turn it around and get in there as quickly as possible.”

Like spaces in Wellesley and North Dumfries, Crowell told council WRPS would likely lease the space from Wilmot Township.

WRPS’ rural policing strategy, as described by Crowell at the Wilmot council meeting and during presentations to other councils in the region, is focused around three pillars: community engagement, crime suppression and road safety. The strategy is being led on the ground by rural community patrol Sgt. Jay Hiuser, who began leading policing in the region’s rural communities back in January.

Crowell told council the WRPS has adopted a first-in-Canada stratified policing and crime suppression model aimed at reducing crime and improving accountability. Crowell explained it is an evidence-based model that focuses on addressing high-crime areas, repeat offenders and serious crimes with tailored solutions that could involve many different policing divisions and units within the WRPS organization.

In reviewing last year’s crime and policing statistics, Crowell told councillors police responded to 5,457 calls for service in Wilmot Township. In total, WRPS officers responded to 346,014 calls for service in 2024.

“By and large, this is a very safe community despite the growth, despite the busyness of all that Wilmot Township provides and does,” Crowell said. “This is maintained to be a very safe community in many ways, but not immune to growth pressures, crime pressures that we see in this region and beyond.”

2024 WRPS crime statistics for Wilmot and Waterloo region

• Total calls for service in Waterloo region: 346,014

• Calls for service in Wilmot Township: 5,457 (down one per cent from 2023)

• Of those calls in Wilmot:

  • 16 per cent resulted in vehicle stops

  • Nine per cent resulted in a selective traffic-enforcement program

  • Eight per cent resulted in proactive initiatives

  • 675 speeding charges were laid (an increase by three per cent over 2023)

  • 395 other Highway Traffic Act charges were laid

  • 19 impaired-driving charges were laid (down 10 per cent from 2023)

  • 10 seatbelt charges were laid (double last year’s charges)

  • Eight dangerous-driving charges were laid (down 20 per cent from 2023)

  • Five distracted-driving charges was laid (up 67 per cent from 2023)

• Across the region, WRPS responded to:

  • 22 shootings (an increase by 22 per cent from 2023)

  • 97 violent firearm offences (a 17 per-cent decrease)

  • 20 car jackings (double last year’s number)

  • Five homicides (no change)

  • 1,193 stolen vehicles

  • 163 organized crime vehicle thefts

  • 53 attempted organized crime vehicle thefts

  • 156 robberies of a person

  • Nine jewelry store robberies

  • Six pharmacy robberies