Police Services Board elects new chair and vice-chair
Danny Wheeler at the helm

Regional Councillor Danny Wheeler of Georgina was elected chair of the York Regional Police Services Board at its May meeting.

Wheeler, who is also the Town's deputy mayor, succeeds Mayor Dave Barrow, whose term expired May 24.

Wheeler was first appointed by Regional council to the board in January 2002. He was elected Vice-Chair Sept. 17, 2003, and re-elected vicechair in January 2004, '05, '06 and '07.

"I'm thrilled to be the new chair of our Police Services Board and I want to thank the members for their support," he said upon his election. "Our Police Services Board is all about listening and taking action. I'm proud of our track record in listening to citizens and acting on such issues as traffic safety, higher police visibility in our neighbourhoods, and cracking down on guns, drugs and organized crime."

"Our focus is on today and the years ahead - keeping our citizens, their children and their grandchildren safe and secure," he added. "No one on this Police Services Board or our executive command team is satisfied with mediocrity or the status quo. We strive to be better today than we were yesterday. We want to make a difference in the community - in the quality of lives of our citizens."

"As the new chair of our Police Services Board, I can assure you that we will be responsible, accountable and responsive to public concerns and do everything in our power to keep York Region citizens safe and secure," he commented.

Wheeler also extended thanks to Barrow "for his outstanding leadership during the last six years as our chair."

"He has made an incredible contribution to the board, the York Regional Police and lives of the citizens of York Region," he said.

The board also elected Joe Persechini vice-chair. Persechini was first appointed to the board by the Lieutenant Governor April 21, 2004. He was reappointed for a three-year term June 7, 2006.

"I want to thank the board for their confidence and look forward to working with Chair Wheeler, the board and Chief La Barge in my new position," he said. "We have a great team and by working cooperatively with our citizens, we can achieve excellent results in 2007. I look forward to hearing suggestions from our community as we develop our Business Plan for 2008-2010."