By Adam Berls

city hall

Motion to support business & retail crime response forum pivots

Jul 28, 2025 | 7:00 PM

PRINCE GEORGE — A motion put forward by Councillors Kyle Sampson and Tim Bennett regarding holding a business and retail crime response forum has pivoted.

Instead of the City holding the forum, the three local Prince George MLA’s (Kiel Giddens, Rosalyn Bird and Sheldon Clare) have also expressed interest in holding a similar forum, therefore Councillors Sampson and Bennett amended their motion to reflect showing support for a forum, so as to not have a similar forum.

Council did support the idea, but there were differing opinions regarding providing staff support and City resources to assist with planning and facilitation.

The idea behind the forum was to “help facilitate stronger collaboration between the RCMP and local business community to address ongoing crime and safety concerns.”

In the original and amended notices of motion, Councillors Sampson and Bennett note that while City Council has limited jurisdiction when it comes to policing, but they say that doesn’t mean that the City should “sit on the sidelines”.

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Sampson and Bennett lay out in their notice of motion, what the forum would do including:

• Create a forum for dialogue between police leadership and the business sector, as well as City staff.
• Allow for a variety of retailers the opportunity to participate and benefit
• Enable organizations like the PG Chamber of Commerce and Downtown Prince George to represent similar businesses
• Provide space for collaboration on new or expanded community policing programs relevant to the retail sector.
• Provide an opportunity for future collaboration and direct connections between participating bodies, particularly the RCMP and individual businesses, and the provincial government

The motion’s aim is to “not solve crime overnight” but it could “help build partnerships that make smarter, faster responses possible.”

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X: @AdamBerls

Email: Adam.Berls@pattisonmedia.com