Committee Report CR-3

The Public Safety Committee held a public meeting on Monday, December 13, 2004 beginning at one o’clock and fifteen minutes P. M. in the Ackermann Room for the purpose of continuing discussion of a new police station.

Present at the meeting were Councillor Henrietta Davis, Chair of the Committee, Mayor Michael A. Sullivan, and City Clerk D. Margaret Drury.  Also present were Police Commissioner Ronnie Watson, Superintendent David Degou, Superintendent Michael Giacoppo, Deputy Superintendent Michael Walsh and Stephanie Anderberg, Community Development Department.

Councillor Davis convened the meeting and explained the purpose. Commissioner Watson requested that Deputy Superintendent Walsh report on recent developments.  Deputy Superintendent Walsh informed the committee that the first test of the public opinion survey to be used in the public outreach took place last week at a business meeting of security professionals.  Superintendent Giacoppo made a power point presentation, and the survey was passed out.  About 20 copies were returned.  There were no surprises in the responses.  Copies of the survey and the power point presentation are attached to this report.

Deputy Superintendent Walsh also distributed a draft of a “frequently asked questions” (FAQ) brochure that he is developing as the presentations go along and the common questions become apparent.

So far, the FAQs relate to response time, noise, what services could be available at locations other than the police station and safety issues in the vicinity of a police station.

Councillor Davis noted that questions about how much parking is planned and/or needed came up at the Collaborative Leadership Council.  She said that she expects that there will be questions about whether there can be a police substation if the new station is not centrally located.  Councillor Davis asked if questions about how the City will pay for the new station came up at the security professionals meeting.  Superintendent Giacoppo said that the question came up briefly, but that they just said that as police, they were not in a position to answer those questions.  Councillor Davis agreed that the police should not be the people answering the financial questions, but she was concerned that there be someone or some way to deal with the questions when they come up at public meetings.  She suggested talking to City Manager Healy and Mr. DePasquale, Assistant City Manager for Finance about this issue.  Commissioner Watson said that a FAQ brochure in the area of financing issues prepared by the finance experts could be very helpful.

Councillor Davis requested that she be notified of all of the public presentations that they make on the subject of a new police station.  Deputy Superintendent Walsh informed her that they will be attending the meeting of the East Cambridge Planning Team at the East End House on December 14

.  A meeting has been scheduled with the North Cambridge Task Force for the third week in January.  There is a meeting scheduled at the city-wide senior center.  There will also be meetings with the Riverside Neighborhood Group, the Cambridgeport neighborhood organization, the Area Four Task Force, the Inman Square neighborhood association and the Mid-Cambridge Neighborhood Association, although these meetings have not yet been scheduled.

Councillor Davis requested that Deputy Superintendent Walsh describe the public presentation.  Deputy Superintendent Walsh said that a lot will be dictated by the meeting with which they are trying to blend.  They will start by passing out the FAQ brochure.  Superintendent Giacoppo will do the power point presentation.  Photographs of the current conditions at the police station will also be featured.  Councillor Davis asked if the power point presentation on the standards for a state of the art police station can be tied to the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) standards.  Deputy Superintendent Walsh answered in the affirmative.  He said that the IACP is the source of the standards presented in the power point presentation, and that is explained in the accompanying verbal presentation, but it would also be possible to change the power point screen visual to state the source explicitly.  Deputy Superintendent Walsh also noted that the parking issue has been made much more general in the revised presentation.  They now believe that it is much too early to discuss the specific number of parking spaces that will be needed.

Eli Yarden, 143 Pleasant Street said that if the police are going to make these presentations at regularly scheduled meetings of the neighborhood associations, they should request that the organization advertise the meeting.  Deputy Superintendent Walsh agreed that this would be a good idea.

Councillor Davis then moved to a discussion of the results of the walk-in business user survey.  Deputy Superintendent Walsh submitted a report of the survey results,

and summarized the information.  A survey of all persons coming to the police station was conducted during the period of November 17, 2004 to December 3, 2004.  On average, 65-70 people came to the police station to transact business each day.  Of these, 40% conducted their business at the front desk.  Although the survey did not break down these front desk services, in general, front desk services sought and provided included directions, filing reports and bailing out prisoners.

The Records Unit accounted for the next largest category of services requested, about 35% of the overall services requested.  Another 15 % of requests were for the Investigative Section, including the Special Investigations Unit, Domestic Violence Unit, the Sexual Assault Unit and general investigative services.  The remaining 20% of services requested were distributed among other areas including the Commissioner’s Office (includes personnel and purchasing, Community Relations, PIO, Quality Control, Crime Analysis and the Property/Evidence Unit.

Deputy Superintendent Walsh stated that one of the visioning committees is looking at expanding and improving the use of technology in police work.  He noted that the expanded use of technology in the way that services are provided will mean that some of the types of business which people now come to the police station to transact will be more conveniently available by e-mail and internet.

Ordered:         That the City Council go on record supporting the increased use of technology in the Police Department’s interactions with the public; and be it further

Ordered:         That the City Manager be and hereby is requested to ascertain that the MIS Department provides the  Police Department with whatever assistance is necessary and appropriate to achieve that goal.

Councillor Davis noted that the power point presentation discusses criteria, but does not rank the criteria, and suggested discussing the question of ranking at the next meeting.

Elie Yarden, 143 Pleasant Street, stated that the Cambridge police do a rather remarkable job, especially in light of the high turnover in the population and Cambridge’s daytime population of ¼ million people.  He would like to see resources added to the police department.  The question is what kind of policing Cambridge wants.  It is clear that citizens want to be comfortable – safe, but more than that.  If the goal is to have people walk rather than drive, this policy needs to be considered in planning a new police station.  He suggests that planning be done with a vision for the future, not just the fears of the moment.

Stash Horowitz, 12 Florence Street, vice president of the Association of Cambridge Neighborhoods, stated that he questions whether this is the right time to build a new police station in light of the sharp rise in property value assessments and the increased percentage of taxes that residents are paying vis a vis percentage paid by commercial taxpayers.  He does not believe that residents will stand for the increase in taxes that a new police station will bring.

Councillor Davis noted that in the next meeting or the subsequent one, the committee should review the financial situation of the city as it relates to the plan for a new police department.

Councillor Davis thanked all those present for their participation, and complimented the work of the Police Department on the public presentation and surveys.  She noted that the next meeting is scheduled for 11 a.m. on January 11, 2005, and that the agenda will include a report on site selection and discussion of whether criteria should be further specified or ranked.