BOYLE — Residents of Boyle and travellers passing through are sure to have noticed the presence of the gleaming white SUV’s adorned with the tell-tale bison and Crown crest of the RCMP often patrolling the streets, avenues, and highways around the village.
It’s that visbility, along with traffic enforcement and community engagement Sgt. Dennis Properzi is hoping to carry into the local detachments 2025 fiscal year, which began on April 1.
Properzi was in front of village councillors April 16 to give an update on the detachment’s areas of enforcement focus for the next 12 months, goals for the summer, and a staffing update as officers prepare for the busy season.
“Some of the priorities that some detachments set, they shoot for the moon, and I don’t really like promising a bunch of things that we have to scramble to try and keep, so priorities I like to keep fairly broad,” the detachment commander told village councillors April 16.
Traffic enforcement continues to be a priority for the Boyle detachment; with both highways 63 and 663 running through the community, Properzi said both ensuring both commercial and passenger drivers are following the rules of the road is a big part of the job.
“I monitor to make sure there’s violation tickets being issued,” said Properzi. “I want my guys out there a little bit; not saying they have to be a big proponent of tickets, but if you come across it, I expect enforcement.”
In conjunction with Sgt. Lee Simpkin’s Traffic Unit, the RCMP host joint check stops at least once a month to curb and catch impaired drivers, a habit the team will continue as seasonal residents and guests return to the area. Officers are also increasing their presence in the Wandering River area at the request of the community.
“We can’t be out there every day, but if people know that the chance of getting snagged in certain areas, they’re hopefully going to curb some of the crime in our area and — knock on wood, we’ve been good — reduce the fatalities to zero, especially on the roadways.”
Community engagement will also continue to be a top priority for the detachment. Properzi said ensuring a friendly police presence is felt at events like school talks, concerts like Gord Bamford and community events in the village or surrounding lake communities helps police-public relationships, and is an aspect of the job he doesn’t take lightly as leader.
“If we know about ‘em, we’re going, and that’s just to get everybody engaged,” said Properzi. “Generally we’re getting new staff, so that’s a good way for everybody to get to know them and for them to feel that they belong here and gets them a good feeling of owning the community as well.
“I believe the bucks stops with me, so if I’m making the time to do it, there’s no excuse for the others.”
The detachment will be adding more priorities for the upcoming fiscal year following feedback gathered at town hall meetings held throughout the spring. Usually held in April, Properzi is instead planning meetings for May in an attempt to up attendance numbers.
Out with the old, in with the new
This spring and summer will see staff turnover for the detachment, but Properzi said his roster will be well-equipped for the season, despite initial estimations.
“Staffing in K-Div, they’re under a lot of stress. I did what I could to stick up for us, so I will be in good shape this summer. I was going into the spring very, very bleak with some staff,” said Properzi.
“I’m only allowed to email staffing now, I can’t phone them now as per my boss. But it worked, I got my staff.”
One new recruit joined the team in mid-April, and a second is expected to start in June. In exchange, members will say goodbye to two experienced officers in June and July. One soft vacancy due to paternity leave will remain open until the new father returns.
Properzi said the transfers out will leave the detachment without most of its four-year members, and while the new recruits will need lots of training, he’s got first crack to instill good habits.
The village’s Corporal position remains unfilled after a potential placement fell through. The posting will be advertised again until late spring, but Properzi said he does have one particular candidate in mind, someone who has worked in the Boyle area before and would likely be willing to stay in the community long-term.
“If everything works out well, they’ll transition into nicely into my spot when I decide to move on to other pastures in a few years. It’ll be good for the community.”
“We just want to say thank you for looking out for our community, for our future, because it’s obviously important to us to have future leaders come forward,” said Derko. “That’s something you don’t have to do, it’s something you choose to do, so we appreciate it.”
Mayor Colin Derko thanked Properzi for his forward-thinking efforts in ensuring the detachment is staffed now and in the future, and during a later discussion on policing costs, said the new payment model introduced by the province in 2020, requiring municipal monies’ bang isn’t worth the buck.
In 2020, the province announced rural municipalities and communities under 5,000 would be responsible for paying increasing shares of the RCMP contract costs year over year, but froze increases late last year until March 2026.
The village paid $42,000 for policing services in 2024, coming in under the $55,000 budgeted for the year. Despite seeing savings this year, the policing bill for next year is unknown, and could reach 39 per cent after new RCMP collective agreements were reached.
“They’re in a transition, and there’s people leaving and people coming and whatever, but the cheques don’t seem to be in a transition period,” said Derko. “It’s something that we’ll have to pay attention to.”
Lately
Properzi also gave councillors an update on recent goings-on within the community and the detachment, including a smash and grab at the Hooters Truck Stop and Restaurant, involving local youths.
He said to address kids getting into trouble in the community, he’s started connecting with Boyle School to participate in meetings with students and parents to address both criminal and in-school behaviour issues.
A recent vehicle stop found a driver with 80 firearms, all of which proved to be legal. According to Properzi, the driver was stopped while on his way to a firearms auction.
One officer finished training for a 40 millimetre less-lethal launcher designed for de-escalation where lethal firearms aren’t necessary.
“I stress about having to go to the extreme when we’re using use of force, so if we have those options available to members, and they’re able to use it effectively, that saves them four years of hell with ASIRT fatality inquires, potentially sued. The stress itself will probably end somebody’s career.”
The detachment’s landscaping budget ran out last year before Properzi’s vision for the exterior was complete, but he said work to install the finishing touches, like more trees, will begin over the May long weekend.
“That detachment is going to look very good,” said Properzi. The first phase of the improvements earned the detachment an award in 2024, a feat Properzi hopes to beat with the finished product. “It was only half-done, so I hope to bump it up a bit.”
