OneCity on safety: crisis teams, a survivor fund and a public review of the VPD
OneCity says it would send mental health workers and peer responders to calls that need no police, use community messengers to stop violence early, expand restorative justice, create a Survivor Safety Fund, put Housing First at the base of safety and order a public review of the VPD.
SAFE STREETS & PUBLIC SPACES FOR ALL
Progressive Public Safety and Public Accountability for Policing: what the Our Plans says
OneCity released its Progressive Public Safety Plan on September 25, 2026. The party calls it a 10-point plan built on three principles. This page covers the first and the third: what the party calls progressive public safety, and public accountability for policing. The street design points are on the next page. Councillor Lucy Maloney announced the plan with the party, and Council candidates Caitlin Stockwell and Iona Bonamis are quoted in the release.
The first group is about who answers a call. Trained mental health workers and peer responders, meaning people with lived experience, would take calls where police are not needed. The party says this would let police focus on organized and major crime, and let fire and medical crews focus on emergencies. Trusted community messengers, such as the teams the party calls CRCL teams, would step in before a conflict grows. The party would also build on the Downtown Community Court and Indigenous-led safety models to reduce repeat offending.
Survivors of domestic and intimate partner violence would get fast, low-barrier emergency money through frontline organizations, and a Community Safety Table would coordinate help in each neighbourhood. The plan names Housing First, meaning a stable home comes before other support, as its base for responding to the causes of crime. The last point is an independent, publicly reported review of the Vancouver Police Department. Council approves the police budget, while the Vancouver Police Board directs the department, so a review would need both. Courts and health services are provincial, so the crisis and justice items also depend on the Province.
THE PARTY'S NUMBERS
Figures in this chapter
Number of points OneCity gives its Progressive Public Safety Plan
The party's figureNumber of principles OneCity says the safety plan is built on
The party's figure6 COMMITMENTS
What the party says it would do
One coordinated crisis response system
OneCity would create one crisis response system in which trained mental health professionals and peer responders answer calls when police are not needed, so police can focus on organized and major crime and first responders on fire and medical emergencies.
- Who has the power
- City, with others Council can fund city crisis teams, but the Police Board directs the police department and mental health services are provincial.
Community violence intervention
The party would use trusted community messengers, such as the teams it calls CRCL teams, to step in before conflict escalates.
- Who has the power
- City Council Council can fund community programs through the city budget.
Restorative justice that reduces reoffences
OneCity would build on Vancouver's Downtown Community Court and Indigenous-led community safety models to reduce what it calls the catch-and-release cycle.
- Who has the power
- City, with others Courts and justice programs are provincial, so the city can fund and support community programs alongside them.
A Survivor Safety Fund and a Community Safety Table
The party would create a Survivor Safety Fund giving fast, low-barrier emergency money to survivors of domestic and intimate partner violence through frontline organizations, plus a Community Safety Table to coordinate neighbourhood response and supporters.
- Who has the power
- City Council Council can make grants to community organizations and set up its own coordinating table.
Housing First
OneCity names Housing First, a stable home before other support, as the base of its response to the factors that contribute to crime. The party says a person with a safe home is safer, and so are their neighbours.
- Who has the power
- City, with others Council decides where supportive housing is approved, while health services are provincial and federal.
An independent, publicly reported review of the VPD
The party would order an independent organizational review of the Vancouver Police Department, reported in public and held to the same standard as other public services, to show where to invest, where to find savings and which calls other services could handle.
- Who has the power
- City, with others Council approves the police budget, but the Vancouver Police Board directs the department, so the review would need the board's cooperation.
WHO WOULD HAVE TO ACT
Where the power sits for this chapter
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Questions about progressive public safety and public accountability for policing
What is OneCity's plan for police in Vancouver?
OneCity would order an independent, publicly reported organizational review of the Vancouver Police Department to show where to invest, where to save and which calls other services could take. It would also send mental health workers and peer responders to calls that need no police (OneCity Progressive Public Safety Plan, September 25, 2026).
Does OneCity want mental health workers to answer some 911 calls?
Yes. OneCity proposes one coordinated crisis response system in which trained mental health professionals and peer responders answer calls when police are not needed. The party says this frees police for organized and major crime (OneCity Progressive Public Safety Plan, September 25, 2026).
What is OneCity's Survivor Safety Fund?
It is a fund that OneCity says would give fast, low-barrier emergency money to survivors of domestic and intimate partner violence, delivered by frontline organizations. A Community Safety Table would coordinate neighbourhood help alongside it. The page gives no dollar amount (OneCity Progressive Public Safety Plan).
Can Vancouver City Council order a review of the VPD?
Council approves the police budget, but the Vancouver Police Board directs the police department. OneCity's proposed independent review of the VPD would therefore need the board to cooperate (OneCity Progressive Public Safety Plan, September 25, 2026).
What does OneCity say about restorative justice?
OneCity says it would build on Vancouver's Downtown Community Court and Indigenous-led community safety models to reduce repeat offending. Courts are provincial, so the city's part would be funding and support (OneCity Progressive Public Safety Plan, September 25, 2026).
How does OneCity link housing and crime?
OneCity lists Housing First as one of the points in its safety plan. The party says a stable, safe home is the base for responding to the factors that contribute to crime, and makes both the person and their neighbours safer (OneCity Progressive Public Safety Plan).
ON THE BALLOT
The OneCity candidates behind this
Sources
Every commitment on this page comes from the party's own material, marked SAYS SO ITSELF. It proves what the party says it would do. Who holds each power is our own addition, from the sources listed after it.
- OneCity's Progressive Public Safety Plan: Safe Streets & Public Spaces for All SAYS SO ITSELFOneCity · published · checked