2018/10/17 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

October 17, 2018 Protecting public safety In police and fire, Chief Templeman and Chief DeMarco have worked with their command teams to restructure and reduce their top-level positions, while adding more boots on the ground. We continue to actively recruit to fill vacancies in both departments, particularly in police, where we have seen a record number of retirements over the past two years. Our fire department has been actively working for the past several years to respond to the changing needs of our community in an efficiently and effectively. I look forward to working with Chief DeMarco and his new leadership team to ensure that we can continue to provide the highest level of service to our residents and community. Our police team, too, has shown incredible leadership in adapting and directing resources to keep our community safe. This year we have focused on reducing youth and gun violence, especially gang-related activity. Councilmember McNeal, I know this is a priority of yours, and I thank you for your passion for our youth and their safety. As I have shared previously, • we recently established a new gang response unit and I am optimistic about the initial results that we have seen from our efforts this year. We are also expanding engagement between the police department and our community. This month we announced the 10 individuals who will serve as our inaugural Chief's Community Advisory Board and provide valuable insight to Chief Templeman and the department. Investing in economic development and community engagement My 2019 budget also includes a realignment of City teams around the key priorities of economic development, including marketing and tourism, and community development and engagement. New businesses, new construction, and new visitors all represent new revenue for Everett. We have heard for many years that Everett is on the edge of a renaissance; we must invest in economic development priorities in order to achieve that growth. i 324