By Sean Leslie

First civilian named police board chairman

Apr 15, 2013 | 2:01 PM

Several members of the Prince Albert Board of Police Commissioners were sworn in at City Hall on Monday.

New chairman Richard Ahenakew was one of the appointees and he, like three other board members, is a civilian. In other words, four of the seven police commissioners are not politicians or cops, but Prince Albert community members.

This mix will help separate politics from policy-making said Police Chief Troy Cooper, “They represent the voice of the community and they make decisions for the right reasons, based on their citizenship and the fact that they’re part of the community, so for us to have citizens on the board is critical.”

Previously, the board was comprised of five members with the mayor serving as chair. Richard Ahenakew, the general manager of the Northern Lights Casino, shares Cooper’s view of how this new board, with a heavy civilian presence, will benefit the community.

“It gives a better chance to ensure that politics and the board are separated, that decisions are made based on the good of the community, and that no other outside influences come in,” he said.

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Ahenakew has extensive experience working with several boards in the Prince Albert area, which is one of the main reasons he was appointed as chairman, said Mayor Greg Dionne. “He’s chaired lots of boards with the same philosophy we have where the board has one employee, which in our case is the chief, so he’s very experienced in the model we use,” said Dionne.

Other board members serving with Ahenakew will be: Mayor Dionne as vice-chair, councillor Lee Atkinson, coun. Tim Scharkowski, Joe Hargrave, Tanner Leger and Sandy Pitzel.

Pitzel, who works at the Cooperative Health Centre is new to the board. She is hoping to apply her knowledge of the Prince Albert community to her work as a police commissioner.

“What I’m hoping to bring is a viewpoint of community development and the importance of everybody and the community working together,” she said.

As the new chairman of the board, Ahenakew is looking forward to implementing new policies that will put the community first.

“I am planning on working closely with the chief of police in trying to create good community policing.

sleslie@panow.com

On Twitter: @princealbertnow