City Council

City Hall City of Olympia 601 4th Avenue E Olympia, WA 98501 Information: 360-753-8447 Meeting Minutes City Council Tuesday, May 14, 2013 5:30 PM Room 207 Special Meeting to Hold a Study Session 1. ROLL CALL Present: 7- Mayor Stephen H. Buxbaum, Mayor Pro Tem Nathaniel Jones, Councilmember Jim Cooper, Councilmember Julie Hankins, Councilmember Steve Langer, Councilmember Jeannine Roe and Councilmember Karen Rogers 2. BUSINESS ITEM 2.A 13-0385 Agenda Item: Oral Report - Downtown Policing Police Chief Ronnie Roberts thanked the Council for the opportunity to talk about downtown policing. He then introduced Lieutenant Paul Lower to walk the Council through the work done to date and the proposed plan moving forward. Lieutenant Lower began by talking about other initiatives underway that are working towards the Council Goal of “Champion Downtown,” which includes the downtown project, placemaking, alley projects, alcohol impact area (AIA), and downtown ambassadors, to name a few. He then stated that in pulling this plan together they talked with the Olympia Downtown Association, downtown community members, Intercity Transit, Port of Olympia, downtown ambassadors, Olympia code enforcement, Parks Department, and Police Department officers and staff. What they heard through these conversations is a desire for a more consistent presence downtown, that we dedicate at least one officer to the downtown area, and that we coordinate our efforts with other groups and projects aimed at the same goal of a safe and welcoming downtown for all. There is $100,000 available in 2013 to fund a downtown patrol. The money would be used to fund eight months of overtime to backfill regular patrols, which will free up an officer to be dedicated to downtown, the operating costs for the officer assigned, and for special emphasis projects that may arise. In terms of duties, the officer would be assigned to downtown Tuesday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. until 5:30 p.m., would collaborate on downtown projects, partner with downtown community groups, and address hot spots and criminal behavior. Lieutenant Lower then introduced Officer Jeff Herbig, who will be assigned to this position. Officer Herbig stated that he was born and raised in Olympia and is excited to take on these City of Olympia Page 1 City Council Meeting Minutes May 14, 2013 responsibilities. Councilmember Roe inquired about the coverage and wondered why we did not have anyone assigned over the weekend. Lieutenant Lower stated that the days and hours were based on feedback from the downtown community and businesses who wanted more presence during the day when people are in and around downtown. He stated that on weekends it is for the most part pretty quiet up until the bars close, and they already have officers in place to address that. Mayor Pro Tem Jones and Councilmember Hankins thanked Chief Roberts, Lieutenant Lower, and OPD command staff for the time and thoughtfulness in pulling this plan together. Councilmember Cooper stated that it would be great to get an update on our progress during the budget process so we can ensure we have adequate resources available moving forward. Councilmember Langer asked about how this would be communicated out. Chief Roberts indicated they would be doing a press release and some direct outreach in the downtown area, and that they would do that as we get closer to rolling this out, which is expected to occur the first part of June. The report was received. 3. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 6:15 p.m. City of Olympia Page 2