At the May 12 Town of Okotoks Council meeting, Council approved the 2025 Okotoks Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Detachment’s Annual Performance Plan and Okotoks Municipal Enforcement’s 2025 priorities, along with reviewing the 2025 Public Safety Survey: What We Learned Report.
Thanks to valuable input from the community, the Town is focusing efforts where they matter most to residents, ensuring that local policing and community safety strategies are aligned with community priorities.
The Okotoks RCMP’s Annual Performance Plan aligns provincial and local priorities to reflect the public safety needs of the community. Both Okotoks Municipal Enforcement and Okotoks RCMP used feedback from the 2025 Public Safety Survey, where a strong majority of respondents reported feeling satisfied with the overall level of safety in Okotoks and with policing services provided.
“Hearing from the community is essential to determine what their priorities are from a community safety perspective,” said Mayor Tanya Thorn. “When residents take the time to share their experiences, it helps us make more informed decisions. This feedback helps to focus enforcement and policing efforts on what matters most to the people of Okotoks.”
This marks the second year the Town has undertaken a joint community engagement approach to inform local policing and community safety strategies.
“This year’s engagement gave us a clearer picture of what matters most to residents and hearing from those we serve is important,” said Vikram Kulkarni, municipal enforcement manager. “Traffic concerns, noise, and unsightly premises stood out as top issues, and these will help guide our efforts as we deliver on our 2025 priorities.”
The 2025 Public Safety Survey and Public Safety Open House provided Okotoks residents with both in-person or online opportunities to provide input on policing needs in the community, and perceptions of public safety over the 2024 calendar year.
“Listening to the community is a key part of our planning process,” said Mike Zinck, Okotoks RCMP detachment commander. “We’re grateful to all those who participated in the survey or joined us at the Open House. Your input is helping us better align our work with local expectations.”
The survey was available from February 18 to March 4, resulting in 473 responses. In addition, the Public Safety Open House welcomed 55 community attendees.
Based on survey input, Okotoks Municipal Enforcement and the RCMP have identified the following priority areas:
Okotoks Municipal Enforcement priorities:
- Traffic enforcement
- Noise
- Nuisance and unsightly premises
Okotoks RCMP priorities:
- Traffic safety
- Crime reduction
- Proactive police visibility
To review the What We Learned Report and to find out more information on the RCMP’s Annual Policing Plan and Municipal Enforcement priorities, please visit ShapeOurTown.Okotoks.ca/public-safety-survey.