The new York Regional Police Marine Unit in Jackson’s Point, providing faster emergency response times on Lake Simcoe, will celebrate its grand opening on Oct. 5.
The York Regional Police Marine Unit is currently based at Krates Marina located only a few miles from the southern end of Lake Simcoe on Cook’s Bay. They patrol almost 20 miles north from there, up to Kempenfelt Bay on the west and down the east side of the lake from Beaverton back to Cook’s Bay. The new Jackson’s Point location is far more central to their patrol area.
Staff Sergeant Aaron Busby of the York Regional Police said the new building would “exponentially reduce response times,” and serve to benefit the community.
“When we speak of emergency response, we commonly refer to the terms, ‘water doesn’t give a second chance’ and ‘seconds count,'” he said. “Our current deployment strategy involves members reporting for duty at one location, and deploying from another. Due to increased service demands, this new building is vital to meeting the communities expectations.”
The Jackson’s Point location also offers some perks. The building is located right next to a boat service facility, which will help to keep patrol equipment operational. There is also a gas tank for refuelling built at the side of the boathouse entrance and a floating dock to improve service.
“Water doesn’t give a second chance,”
Staff Sergeant Aaron Busby
Ted Rankine is the president of Playsafe Productions, a national producer of safety related educational videos and a long time Lake Simcoe boater. Through his safety work with the York Regional Police Marine Unit, he has come to know the officers well and sees the trust and good relations they have built with the boaters of Lake Simcoe.
“They have taken community policing to the water,” he said. “You get the feeling that they’re there to help you. They have developed a pretty strong relationship with boaters in the area, and boaters tend to really step up to be more responsible than you might find in other areas where the policing is not as community based.”
Once the construction and grand opening celebration is complete, the York Regional Police are expected to transfer to the new location within two weeks.