Background
The South Island 9-1-1/Police Dispatch Centre project was initiated in 2016 to provide a facility that meets post-disaster standards and fosters collaboration between partners for emergency response and management. The project also aimed to create opportunities for improved efficiencies and modernized equipment.
Construction of the $13.1-million facility began in October 2017, and was completed in late fall 2018 on time and under budget. The CRD provided funding for the initiative, with oversight provided by the South Island 9-1-1/Police Dispatch Steering Committee, composed of police chiefs from Central Saanich, Oak Bay, Saanich, and Victoria, and representatives of the RCMP, the Province of British Columbia, CRD and E-Comm, Emergency Communications for British Columbia.
Project Details
The new two-storey, 1,200-square-metre, post-disaster facility, built and owned by the CRD and operated by E-Comm, consolidates 9-1-1 call-answer, police call-taking and dispatch services for the Central Saanich, Oak Bay, Saanich and Victoria police departments and 11 RCMP detachments in the central and southern Vancouver Island region.
Located at 4219 Commerce Circle in Saanich, the centre has been fully operational since late January 2019, following the successful transition of all police agency call-taking and dispatch operations. A grand opening ceremony was held in March 2019, officially opened by B.C. Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Mike Farnworth, the CRD, local police agencies and E-Comm.