After 35 years with the RCMP, including five years as Burnaby’s top cop, Dave Critchley has quickly found a way to keep busy in retirement.
In fact, the former chief superintendent isn’t retiring at all and has a new job a short distance from his old office in city hall as Burnaby’s director of public safety and community services.
In the civilian role, Critchley will be responsible for overseeing five city departments including police, fire, emergency management and bylaws.
“It’s such an exciting opportunity,” he told the NOW recently. “I hope the city builds something and really complements all the work that’s being done so far.”
Critchley, who officially retired from the RCMP this past summer, said he didn’t want to quit working after leaving the force and when the opportunity came up to join the city, he went for it.
He noted in terms of the Burnaby RCMP, the officer in charge is responsible for the operations of the detachment and deployment of resources, but as director, he’ll work with the commander from the city side to set the strategic goals and vision for policing in the community.
Critchley’s new boss has high praise for the former RCMP officer.
City manager Lambert Chu said Critchley was someone the city had an eye on from the beginning, adding he brings a wealth of management experience and business acumen, having handled budget operations with the RCMP.
“Dave is also very familiar with the City of Burnaby, and so that’s a big plus,” he said. “It’s not like bringing in someone new and foreign to the city with a steep learning curve.”
Chu also explained the position isn’t new but a reclassification of a vacant deputy city manager position that opened after he took the job to replace former city manager Bob Moncur. He suggested it made sense to put the five departments under the one umbrella of public safety and community services.
While Critchley is still getting his feet wet in his new post, he’ll have a full plate handling issues facing the city.
When asked about the fire department carrying and administering the life-saving drug naloxone in reaction to a growing fentanyl crisis, Critchley said he’ll rely on the expertise and input from the fire department to come up with a decision.
The department is gathering data on the issue. In July, a separate code for overdoses was created to better track the data before making a recommendation.
As for overall crime in the city, Critchley suggested Burnaby has done well in reducing crime and is one of the safest communities in B.C. but added there are still challenges like any other big city.
In May, Burnaby RCMP Supt. Stephan Drolet was appointed to chief superintendent and officer in charge of the local detachment.
