Police chief announces retirement

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This article was published 01/06/2023 (935 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Stepping down from the helm as chief of the Brandon Police Service is bittersweet, Wayne Balcaen said.

After six years as chief and 33 years with the force, Balcaen officially announced his retirement on Wednesday.

The police chief’s last day in office will be June 26.

“This has been my routine and my work family for the past 33 years. Knowing that it’s coming to an end is difficult,” Balcaen told the Sun. “But I also know that we’re in excellent hands, so the timing is good.”

Balcaen took on the role in the winter of 2017 after taking on the role of acting chief when Chief Ian Grant retired in October of that year. Balcaen is the 19th chief in BPS history.

The police chief said that he accomplished his goals during his time in the role — among them, expanding the force.

“I’ve been able to accomplish that over the years through adding officers, whether through funding from city council, the province, our partnerships and secondment agreements, and civilianizing some of our positions,” Balcaen said.

He also aimed to build on relationships with Indigenous people and newcomers to the city.

“We know that we’ve made great strides there. We’ve started an Indigenous advisory committee here at the police service where we hear the voices of some of our Indigenous partners [which] helps us decide on which directions we’ll go with some of our activities,” Balcaen said.

The chief noted that one of his proudest moments in the role was swearing his own son in as a member of the force.

Though he cites the pandemic as one of the challenges of his time as chief, where rules changed daily, and there was “no playbook” for policing in a pandemic, Balcaen said he has “no regrets” about his stint leading BPS.

“Every challenge has presented opportunities and our police service, I think, has stepped up to every single one of them, so I’m extremely proud of this group,” Balcaen said. “You can’t lead a group unless you have great people that are following.”

Balcaen has also championed the community safety officer program for BPS, which will be rolled out this summer. Dubbed “community cadets,” the new hires will work primarily in the downtown area to respond to non-violent calls for service and allow police officers to focus on core policing duties.

Though Balcaen will be leaving, he says that the program is in good hands with other people within the force and the partnerships with the city and province.

“I’m looking forward to seeing this grow in our community,” Balcaen said.

Mayor Jeff Fawcett, who also sits on the police board, told the Sun that he has enjoyed working with Balcaen over the years.

“His character and as a person, Wayne is an exceptional guy,” Fawcett said.

The mayor added that he commends the police chief for always being available and for his involvement with the community.

“Wayne has done a great job of understanding and working well with our social services [and] trying to help with redefining the sort of role of police officers in our community.

An interim chief will be appointed in the meantime, while the Police Board begins the process of selecting a new chief, Fawcett said.

“They are big shoes to fill, but they always have been,” the mayor said.

As his term in the force wraps up, Balcaen said that the challenges for BPS in the future will the increased responsibilities for police to respond to situations of mental health crisis or substance use disorder—situations that would fall under health models rather than police.

“We’re having more and more expectation to be service providers in so many different areas,” he said.

The chief said that over the years he has seen the effects of meth and increased poverty on the community.

“We’re never going to arrest our way out of those sorts of situations,” Balcaen said. “Looking upstream … how we can help people and giving them off-ramps to support, has got to be part of models going forward.”

As a Brandonite for more than half a century, Balcaen plans to take some time to decompress and enjoy the summer, he told the Sun.

Balcaen was born in Winnipeg, then moved to Germany when he was six weeks old to join his father, a member of the Canadian military who was serving an overseas tour. After completing the tour, his family returned to Shilo, where Balcaen moved to Brandon at age five.

While travelling is in his future plans, Balcaen says has no intention of ever leaving Brandon. He said he will stay in the Wheat City and spend time with his children and four granddaughters.

“It’s home and it will remain home,” he said.

The chief said that he will remain involved in the community through his membership on various boards and said that he has plans to look for opportunities to help serve the community.

» gmortfield@brandonsun.com

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