Town court has only one place to go
Comment
by Chris Simon

Holding court in Innisfil is a great idea, and deciding where it goes should be a simple decision.

Earlier this month, town council debated whether to allow a municipally-owned facility to be used as a provincial offences court, beginning in the spring. Essentially, council was told that the province was willing to pay about $14,350 in rent per year, to use either the Churchill Community Centre or space at the new Town Hall several days per month. The court would dramatically relieve the backlog at existing sites in Barrie and Bradford, if it were approved by town council.

The court would be a real coup for town residents. However, the obvious benefit for the municipality will be seen in police servicing. The South Simcoe Police Service would be expected to save between $223,000 and $639,000 in salaries, fees and other costs per year, should a court be established in Innisfil. When police are called to testify at court cases in Barrie, they're often out of their jurisdiction for the entire day, something that costs South Simcoe money and manpower. When they appear in Bradford, they may still be too far away to respond to calls in Innisfil.

But a court in Innisfil would allow police to remain in their jurisdiction and respond, if necessary, to emergency calls.

Within the next few weeks, council will decide between Churchill and the Town Hall. Several councillors appear to be leaning towards the Churchill site, with some merit. Once the Town Hall opens in March, its community meeting rooms are expected to sap bookings away from Churchill. It's left council trying to find something to do with the facility, and a court seems like a viable alternative.

However, the Churchill site would need between $50,000 and $100,000 in renovations, by adding carpeting, access to a judges' office and private washroom, and two separate offices for the prosecutor and defense attorneys. As part of the agreement between the town and province, the municipality would also agree to providing snow clearing, custodial, heat, hydro, internet, telephone and general maintenance services.

The town really isn't getting paid well for hosting a court, and adding thousands of dollars in renovations to a soon-to-be rarely used community centre seems wasteful. At either site, the court would be a part-time occupant, but the town hall would already be receiving many of those basic services without a significant extra cost.

A court in the new Town Hall would also better serve the community. One of the reasons for choosing the new Town Hall site was its central location within the municipality. It's well known, and located in an easily accessible area for the majority of town residents. Less work would need to be done to accommodate a court at the Town Hall, and it seems to be the preferred location for the province.

The Town Hall would be located across the parking lot from South Simcoe's main Innisfil station, which would provide convenient access for officers being called to testify. The Town Hall also has plenty of room. The third floor of the building is being left vacant, until the town needs the extra space for administrative purposes. Although there is potential for the space to be rented out to local businesses for the next few years, the overall cost savings and benefits for the community by holding court could outweigh the financial impact of renting to a private company.

Of course, the Town Hall would also include community meeting space that could be used for court instead.

Councillor Lynn Dollin suggested renting out that valuable community space for court usage would put a bad taste in the mouths of local residents and organizations. But exactly the opposite could occur. Sure, the court would take away some of the availability of meeting room space, but residents may be happy to see that their new $10 million Town Hall is having a direct impact on their community.

Perhaps a lack of availability at the Town Hall will even spur organizations to rent space in Churchill, without spending thousands of dollars for upgrades. If that fails, the town could always look at selling the Churchill site. Either way, court at the Town Hall appears to be the most viable option for council.