November 2, 2011 18:11:00

Curtis Rush      

Police Reporter     

 

York Region police are hiring a private security firm to guard their own building in Aurora.
 

On the surface, it’s an ironic twist, admitted deputy chief Tom Carrique.  However, the $700,000, three-year contract makes sense for practical reasons, he told the Star in an interview.

“The private security company will monitor the building for any suspicious activity, which would then be reported to us, the police, for a traditional police response,” he said. 

Primary Response Inc. has been awarded the contract, as it’s cheaper than having police monitor the building, Carrique said. It was undesirable to “tie up the resources of highly skilled officers” to perform a monitoring task 24/7, he said. “Monitoring a security camera does not warrant the attention of a fully trained police officer.”

It’s not as if there is a lack of a police presence in the $72.5 million building at 47 Don Hillock Dr. in Aurora, which opened last year.
 

The building houses a centralized customer service counter, forensic laboratories, investigative bureaus such as the homicide and hold-up squads, plus the canine unit and traffic services.
 

Police Chief Eric Jolliffe’s report to the police services board last week said private security is the most “cost-effective means of monitoring the facility for any suspicious activity and reporting any security concerns.”

Unlike a traditional front-line police district, he added, operations at central services do not warrant uniformed police officers and station duty operators at the front desk to provide service to the community.
 

The private security firm will be responsible for monitoring the 245,000-square-foot building, where 430 employees work on a range of schedules, and a parking structure with 400 spots.
 

Seven vendors submitted proposals and the top three submissions were judged to be Primary Response Inc., Intercon Security Limited and Garda World. The evaluation team chose the winning bid based on factors including experience and track record.
 

The approval process is contingent on Primary Response completing security clearances.