Image: RCMP / The RCMP Investigative Services Building at 8311 Kiernan Drive in Chilliwack is pictured. A grand opening was held in November 2022 to celebrate the grand opening of the building, but nine months removed from the celebratory occasion, the facility is not operational. RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Carmen Kiener said the RCMP hopes to open it sometime this fall. 

By Mike Vanden Bosch

Investigative Services Building

Chilliwack RCMP Investigative Services Building still not operational after grand opening in 2022

Aug 23, 2023 | 11:27 AM

CHILLIWACK — Elected officials and dignitaries alike gathered in November 2022 for the grand opening of the new Chilliwack RCMP Investigative Services Building behind the RCMP detachment on Airport Road.

Roughly nine months later, the facility is still not operational in what was supposed to house the RCMP’s General Investigative Support Team (GIST), Serious Crime Unit and digital field technicians, the Crime Reduction Unit and administrative space for civilian and police use.

Chilliwack RCMP spokesperson Carmen Kiener confirmed in an email on Tuesday, August 22 that Mounties hope to open the facility sometime this fall.

“The Chilliwack RCMP is working hard with the City of Chilliwack to complete the final tasks required for the Investigative Services building to become operational. We are hopeful that everything will be completed by the fall and very excited to make use of this new building as soon as we can,” Cpl. Kiener said in her email.

The RCMP detachment on Airport Road met the needs of a much smaller city dating back to the 1980s. However, with Chilliwack’s rapid growth the past five years that propelled the municipality past 100,000 residents, it became evident to RCMP personnel and city leaders nearly a decade ago that the RCMP had outgrown its existing facility and needed to expand.

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Following council approval in 2014 and after $4 million was spent, the RCMP and the City of Chilliwack celebrated the opening of the new RCMP Investigative Services Building on November 24. RCMP officers christened the occasion by marching to the new site at 8311 Kiernan Drive, just south of the main detachment. The festivities consisted of a First Nations performance of drumming and music, a prayer from chaplain Angus Haggerty, and remarks from RCMP Superintendent OIC Davy Lee, local First Nations chief David Jimmie, RCMP Sgt. Krista Vrolyk, and a representative from Chilliwack-Hope MP Mark Strahl’s constituency office.

The 26,754-square foot facility, which once served as the city of Chilliwack’s Operations Centre, has been substantially upgraded to better accommodate several departments within the Chilliwack RCMP, including the General Investigative Support Team (GIST), Serious Crime Unit, and Crime Reduction Unit.

Due to the nature of the work occurring in the new facility, it will not be open to the public. The current RCMP building on Airport Road will continue to serve members of the public as usual.

“The expansion to this new building is a reflection of the strong and effective partnership shared between the City of Chilliwack and local RCMP. This modern facility will enable our officers and civilian staff to enhance the delivery of high-quality policing service to the community we serve,” Superintendent Davy Lee previously said.

“The City has had a vision for this building for many years, and we are happy that through careful and strategic planning, we were able to renovate the old Operations Centre to meet the growing needs of the RCMP. Public safety is a priority for Council, and we are pleased to provide this support to the RCMP as our community continues to grow,” said Mayor Ken Popove.

The facility will house 18 Wi-Fi access points, 53 cameras, approximately 1,200 network jacks, 178 fibre optic connections, 43.3 kilometres of networking cable, and 3.4 kilometres of fibre optic cable.

“It’s a big project,” RCMP Sgt. Krista Vrolyk said back in November. “For example, it’s designed to allow access for a forklift. Sometimes our exhibits are quite large. There are elevators as well. The tech services are state of the art. The technology that we have in this new building allows our tech team to be probably the most progressive in all of British Columbia. It’s really exciting in that regard. Most of our plain clothes units are the ones that will be housed out of here. It’s a lot of the specialized, more investigative support here, hence the Investigative Services Building name. We’re really excited about this.”

The new facility also features crime victim interview rooms, administrative offices, at least two briefing rooms, and extensive workspaces for crime analysts and serious crime units. There are already built-in Covid barriers, or plexiglass, affixed to cubicle partitions. Cavernous storage rooms will meet the needs of exhibit processing. There’s even the ability to plug in electric vehicles down the road at the facility should the RCMP vehicle fleet go electric.