New police chief takes charge in Victoria

The Victoria Police Department welcomed Chief Fiona Wilson at a swearing in ceremony.

A new chief constable has assumed control of the Victoria Police Department.

Chief Fiona Wilson was sworn into the role during a change of command ceremony at Government House on Thursday afternoon. She replaces former chief Del Manak, who was at the helm for nearly a decade.

“I’m new to Victoria, so I’m really looking forward to getting out on the road on patrol and getting to know the city,” Wilson told reporters ahead of the ceremony.

Wilson spent 26 years with the Vancouver Police Department, most recently working as a deputy. Now, she’s in charge of law enforcement for two very different communities: Victoria and Esquimalt.

“I’m looking forward to addressing their differences and their challenges as we move forward,” Wilson said.

Hundreds of people, including the mayors of Victoria and Esquimalt and policing leaders from across the country, took in the formal transfer of leadership.

“This is a historic event for our people and our organization,” Manak said. “I couldn’t be more proud to be a part of it.”

A CTV News investigation found Wilson secured a $350,000 salary, while Manak was earning $297,250. She’s now the highest-paid municipal police chief on southern Vancouver Island.

Addressing Pandora Avenue, public safety

Wilson’s upcoming patrol shifts with members will undoubtedly take her to Pandora Avenue, where homelessness, addiction, mental illness, and crime collide.

“I’ve spent a lot of time focusing on working to address some of the upstream causes of crime and disorder,” Wilson said.

“Victoria is a really small microcosm of many of the same challenges that the city of Vancouver has and I’m looking forward to taking those almost 27 years of experience and applying them here in Victoria.”

The department and Victoria city council have been criticized over public safety concerns and a lack of progress on Pandora.

Wilson said she looks forward to supporting the city’s Community Safety and Wellbeing Plan, which strives to address “entangled” challenges, such as homelessness, public drug use, and mental health crises.

Manak said all levels of government and community organizations need to align their resources to tackle those issues, of which Pandora Avenue is the epicentre.

“It is one of the areas that I wish we had made a little bit more progress in. It wasn’t for a lack of trying,” Manak said. “Different levels of government are moving at different levels of speed, and it just cannot be fast enough.”

Police board’s top priority for new chief

Wilson takes control of the department just before police officers return to schools on Sept. 2. They were barred from Greater Victoria School District classrooms in 2023, due to concerns their presence could be harmful, particularly for racialized students.

“That is important moving forward to listen to what some of those concerns are, to address them as best we can, and to move forward with having police officers in schools,” Wilson said.

In October, she’ll present a new budget to the Victoria and Esquimalt councils.

With much to be done, the Victoria and Esquimalt Police Board is making its priorities for the new chief clear.

“The board’s immediate priority for the incoming chief is an opportunity for her to integrate within the department, to get to know the members, to build relationships with the community and to understand VicPD culture,” police board chair Micayla Hayes said in an interview last week.

In the months ahead, Hayes said the board and chief will develop a strategic plan.

“I will give this role everything I have,” Wilson said.