Friends, Neighborhood Activists and Local Media;
Last night, Neighborhood Council 7 signed the attached letter in support of the reinstatement of the downtown police officer. While our city's budget constraints are severe, we believe that community based and oriented policing is one of the most effective ways to reduce crime in our neighborhoods.
Sincerely,
Aaron Weissman, Chairman
Last night, Neighborhood Council 7 signed the attached letter in support of the reinstatement of the downtown police officer. While our city's budget constraints are severe, we believe that community based and oriented policing is one of the most effective ways to reduce crime in our neighborhoods.
Sincerely,
Aaron Weissman, Chairman
Neighborhood Council 7
--
November 10, 2008
Dona Stebbins, Mayor
Bill Bronson, Commissioner
Mary Jolley, Commissioner
John Rosenbaum, Commissioner
Bill Beecher, Commissioner
City of Great Falls
PO Box 5021
Great Falls, MT 59403
Dear Honorable Mayor and Commissioners:
Neighborhood Council 7 writes today out of concern that budget constraints are forcing the city to abandon its commitment to community based policing. We are very concerned that staffing shortages in the police department have required that the downtown police officer be reassigned to patrol duties.
Our council is a strong believer in the efficacy of community based policing. Anecdotal reports from residents and local businesses have convinced us that the presence of an officer in the Great Falls Recreation Center was working to decrease petty crime; including thefts, vandalism and vagrancy.
In addition, we believe that his presence was beginning to have a real affect on the willingness of lower-income residents, mainly children, to trust enough in their police department to report issues before they became major crimes. Losing this asset is a real detriment to our public safety and the security of downtown neighbors and businesses.
We understand that city budgets are stretched extremely thin. However, we ask that funds be found to fund this position, even if they have to be temporarily cut from other departments. In the long-term, we look forward to working with you to take steps that ensure that our Police and Fire departments are fully funded for the foreseeable future.
Sincerely,
Neighborhood Council 7
Aaron Weissman (Chair)
--
November 10, 2008
Dona Stebbins, Mayor
Bill Bronson, Commissioner
Mary Jolley, Commissioner
John Rosenbaum, Commissioner
Bill Beecher, Commissioner
City of Great Falls
PO Box 5021
Great Falls, MT 59403
Dear Honorable Mayor and Commissioners:
Neighborhood Council 7 writes today out of concern that budget constraints are forcing the city to abandon its commitment to community based policing. We are very concerned that staffing shortages in the police department have required that the downtown police officer be reassigned to patrol duties.
Our council is a strong believer in the efficacy of community based policing. Anecdotal reports from residents and local businesses have convinced us that the presence of an officer in the Great Falls Recreation Center was working to decrease petty crime; including thefts, vandalism and vagrancy.
In addition, we believe that his presence was beginning to have a real affect on the willingness of lower-income residents, mainly children, to trust enough in their police department to report issues before they became major crimes. Losing this asset is a real detriment to our public safety and the security of downtown neighbors and businesses.
We understand that city budgets are stretched extremely thin. However, we ask that funds be found to fund this position, even if they have to be temporarily cut from other departments. In the long-term, we look forward to working with you to take steps that ensure that our Police and Fire departments are fully funded for the foreseeable future.
Sincerely,
Neighborhood Council 7
Aaron Weissman (Chair)
Erin Tropila
Jim Super
Jim Super
Donna Hartelius
Ole Johnson
Cc: Local Media; Business Improvement
Cc: Local Media; Business Improvement
1 comment:
Supposedly, there was a discussion about this letter at the commission agenda setting session this week. Does anyone have any details? I understand that our request to provide more funding for our police department didn't go over well ...
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