Kenora OPP Detachment Board

The Kenora Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) Detachment Board is committed to keeping the community informed of policing issues and concerns in the City of Kenora through regular information to the local media and annual reporting to the public and Council. Priorities for the Board include strategic planning, community outreach and overall public safety. The Board advises the Ontario Provincial Police Detachment Commander about OPP services in the catchment area of the Board.

Kenora OPP Detachment Board Strategic Plan

The Kenora OPP Detachment Board Strategic Plan 2023 - 2027 establishes a vision and mandate for the Kenora OPP Detachment Board and identifies community priorities, objectives, and strategies for enhancing protective services, community safety and other police matters. The Plan guides the Board's ongoing commitment to community safety and policing excellence on a day-to-day and longer-term basis.

Vision

Through collaborative and progressive policing, Kenora strives to be a community where residents, visitors and stakeholders feel safe and secure.

Mission

To work with community, stakeholders, and the Kenora OPP detachment in identifying and addressing community safety priorities.

Focus areas

The Kenora OPP Detachment Board Strategic Plan focuses on three areas: 

Protection and crime prevention

Taking progressive protective and preventative measures to improve community safety.

Engagement and community

Improving awareness and information sharing through modernized communications.

Development of community partnerships

Building and leveraging partnerships to address complex and multi-faceted safety and safety and policing challenges.

For a summary, you can view the Strategic Plan slideshow that was shared at the public launch on June 22, 2023.

Strategic plan survey

You helped to guide the strategic planning process by completing the 2022 KPSB Strategic Plan Survey. The survey was launched in August 2020 to gather feedback from the community on policing services in Kenora. There were 709 responses to the survey.

View the survey results report.

View the survey report card brochure.

Who we are

The Board consists of six members, including Councillors, two members of the public (appointed by Council), and one provincial appointment. Meet the current members:

• Joel McGrath (Community Appointment)
• Sheri Norlen (Community Appointment)
• Sara Dias (Provincial Appointee)
• Councillor Lindsay Koch (Vice Chair)
• Councillor Kelsie Van Belleghem (Chair)
• Councillor Barbara Manson
• Heather Pihulak, Board Secretary

Meetings

The Kenora OPP Detachment Board meets monthly from January to June and September to November, at the Kenora OPP Detachment, Hwy 17A. The Board does not meet in the months of July, August, and December unless otherwise posted.

View the Kenora OPP Detachment Board meeting agenda and minutes:

View the past meeting documents:

Role of the Board

The Kenora OPP Detachment Board is established under Section 68 (1) of the Community Safety and Policing Act, 2019. Under this Statute, the OPP detachment board shall: 

• Consult with the Commissioner regarding the selection of a detachment commander and otherwise participate, in accordance with the regulations made by the Minister, in the selection of the detachment commander;
• Determine objectives and priorities for the detachment, not inconsistent with the strategic plan prepared by the Minister, after consultation with the detachment commander or his or her designate;
• Advise the detachment commander with respect to policing provided by the detachment;
• Monitor the performance of the detachment commander;
• Review the reports from the detachment commander regarding policing provided by the detachment; and
• On or before June 30 in each year, provide an annual report to the municipalities and band councils regarding the policing provided by the detachment in their municipalities, 2019, c. 1, Sched. 1, s. 68 (1); 2023, c. 12, Sched. 1, s. 28.

Governance and accountability

The relationship between the Board and the Municipal Council is important. Council enters into the written contract with the OPP and is responsible for the financial commitment of our policing costs. The primary role of the Board is to establish, after consultation with the Detachment Commander, overall objectives and priorities for the provision of police services within the City of Kenora.

The Detachment Commander is responsible for administering the police service and overseeing its operation in accordance with the objectives and priorities established by the Board. Operational matters fall outside the Board's jurisdiction from general management to complaints regarding policing.

The Detachment Commander reports to the Board as a whole and is not accountable to any one or group of Board members. The Board has the authority to make recommendations to the Detachment Commander, but not to other members of the OPP Service. The Board shall not direct the Detachment Commander with respect to specific operational decisions or with respect to day-to-day operations of the Service.

Consideration of the Community Safety and Well-Being Plan

Section 68 (4) requires the OPP Detachment Board to consider any community safety and well-being plan adopted by the municipality it serves. View Kenora's Community Safety and Well Being Plan on our Community Safety and Well-Being Plan page.

Report a crime

Use the OPP online reporting tool to report minor occurrences such as theft, mischief to property, lost property, and driving complaints.

File a police report online