The Saskatoon Police Association is concerned after city administration released its preliminary budget for 2020 and 2021.
The first draft shows the city hiring about 100 full-time employees over both years, but only seven of those will go to police.
The union is frustrated, citing a 2017 report that stated Saskatoon is short by about three dozen officers for optimal staffing.
“So the 38 identified in the audit and then seven per year for additional for growth. Three in 2020, four in 2021,” Saskatoon Police Association president Dean Pringle said.
“It doesn’t cut it.”
According to the city, about a quarter out of every property tax dollar is dedicated to policing in the proposed budget.
Pringle said more boots on the ground are needed with officer burnout cited as a real concern.
Meanwhile, Health Canada has approved the province’s first supervised consumption site in the city, with doors expected to open next year.
Police Chief Troy Cooper is making a proposal to add two officers on or near the site at all times, which works out to eight new officers. That meeting of the board of police commissioners is scheduled for next week.
Last month, Cooper invoked a rare emergency clause, altering schedules so the force can handle a rise in calls and demand in service.
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