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HomeMy Public PortalAbout2022-06-30 packetNOTICE OF MEETING AND TENTATIVE AGENDAi City of Jefferson Public Safety Committee Thursday, June 30, 2020 7:30 a.m. Jefferson City Police Department – 401 Monroe Police Training Room TENTATIVE AGENDA 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 3. OLD BUSINESS 4. NEW BUSINESS a. Cole County EMS/Jefferson City Fire Department 2023 MOU (Chief Hoy) b. PulsePoint (Chief Hoy) c. Declaring Fire Apparatus Surplus (Chief Schofield) d. Introduction of Chief Wilde 5. OTHER BUSINESS a. Fire Department Update (Chief Schofield) b. Police Department Update (Chief Wilde) 6. ADJOURN NOTES i Individuals should contact the ADA Coordinator at (573) 634-6570 to request accommodations or alternative formats as required under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Please allow three business days to process the request. CLICK THE LINK BELOW TO JOIN VIRTUALLY https://jeffersoncity.webex.com/jeffersoncity/j.php?MTID=m6c0dad3abae7a298d669d50782ab0fc6 Or Call-in: +14043971516 Meeting Number: 2484 251 7213 Meeting Password: ZyJdXTB39Z7 1 Public Safety Committee Meeting Call to Order The May 26, 2022, Public Safety Committee meeting was convened at 7:30 a.m. by Councilman Schreiber. Attendance Present: Committee Members: Councilman Mark Schreiber, Councilman Scott Spencer, and Councilwoman Laura Ward. Guests: Mayor Carrie Tergin, Councilman Ron Fitzwater, Associate City Attorney Dustin Birch, Fire Chief Matt Schofield, Police Chief Roger Schroeder, Cole County Emergency Management Director Nick Tietsort, Police Detective Jason Ambler, City Administrator Steve Crowell, Police Captain Deric Heislen, Police Lieutenant Dave Williams, Communications Supervisor Angela Stiefermann, Communications Supervisor Ashley Schepers, Assistant Fire Chief Matt Bowden. Approval of Minutes Councilman Schreiber made a motion to approve the March 31st, 2022 minutes. Councilwoman Ward seconded the motion. Minutes were approved. Discussion of Agenda Items OLD BUSINESS None NEW BUSINESS Update of the Animal Shelter Cremation Policies Dustin Birch stated there is currently a deadline for alternative proposals for the Animal Shelter Cremation Policies to be brought to his attention for consideration. The deadline is May 31, 2022. The implementation date for these policies is July 1, 2022. The policies will be brought to the Chief of Police and the City Administrator to decide whether to implement the policies or not. Councilman Schreiber asked the approved policies be brought to his attention at the June 30th meeting. Introduction of a BusComm Contract for the Purchase, Installation, and Training of the Upgraded Police Department Recording System Chief Schroeder stated an upgrade for the 9-1-1 recording system is essential. The current recoding system is eight years old, which is a typical life expectancy for the current system. The system will be switched from an analog recording system to a digital recording system. An 2 upgrade in technology is necessary to thrive in the technologically advancing world we live in today. Chief Schroeder added BusComm, a sole source provider, has reduced their pricing. The contract will cost approximately $67,000. Chief Schroeder asked the council for approval to advance with the contract. Councilman Schreiber made the motion to advance. Councilwoman Ward seconded the motion. Motion approved. Introduction of Fire Station 3 Siding Repair and Replacement Chief Schofield advised the siding on Fire Station 3 has been needing attention for an extensive amount of time. The closing dates for the first bid process to fix the siding was May 5th, but no bids were received due to the lack of workforce, materials, and other issues. An updated bid process has been put out and will close on May 31, 2022. Chief Schofield stated the completion date of the project would need to be prior to November 1, 2022 to remain within the city’s fiscal year. Another complication with the project is an increase in material and instalment prices. The cost of the repairs is above the allotted budget in the Fire Department “Building and Grounds” account. Chief Schofield suggested a cost share with the city’s Building Maintenance Sinking Fund. He suggested the cost be split 75% between the funds, but does not have an exact dollar amount yet. The issue will be brought to the June 6th, 2022 council meeting. Councilman Spencer asked many questions regarding the process of the repairs. Chief Schofield stated the building was constructed in 2013. The Fire Department has tried to do its own repairs such as painting, silicon fillings, nailing the siding back to the building, and even had the previous installers return to fix the problems and make the building more weather-proof, but the building material is deteriorating quickly. Additionally, legal remedies were fully explored with the manufacture, architect and installer all with no resolution. Councilman Spencer asked if the previous installers have been banded from rehire of services so these problems don’t arise again. Chief Schofield declared the previous installers will not be hired again. City Administrator Crowell added the previous vendors have been added to a list of vendors that are not eligible for rehire. Councilman Spencer asked if there are vendors willing to bid on a full renovation of the siding. Assistant Fire Chief Bowden stated there is one bidder at this time. Councilman Schreiber asked the bids be brought to his attention via email to the committee prior to the June 6th, 2022 council meeting. OTHER BUSINESS Fire Department Update Chief Schofield advised the training season is at its peak with the optimal weather of spring. Trench Resource Training will be taking place at Riverside Elis-Porter Park. High and Low Angle Rope Rescue Training will take place at McClung Park. All of the Water Rescue Training will take place on the Missouri River. 3 Chief Schofield stated the annual physical fitness testing and 1582 physicals were conducted in April. Chief Schofield thanked the council for their support through the training programs. Councilman Schreiber thanked Chief Schofield and the Fire Department for his help in the Lions Club peanut sales. Police Department Updates Chief Schroeder and Lieutenant Williams advised the council of hiring issues within the Police Department. Lieutenant Williams stated the Communications Section and police officer personnel are extremely low on personnel. There are currently six communication operator openings. Ten candidates have applied, four candidates have been selected for oral boards. One candidate canceled the oral board due to COVID-19, two candidates did not appear for the oral board, and two candidates completed oral boards on May 25, 2022. Lieutenant Williams stated police officer personnel are short by thirteen people. One recruit is attending the Law Enforcement Training Institute, and three recruits have graduated the LETI program and have completed the field training program. One officer was hired POST certified and is almost compete with the field training program. Two police officer applicants passed the written testing on May 20, 2022. On May 21, 2022, five more applicants were tested. A past Jefferson City police officer will be returning to the department on May 31, 2022, and will undergo an accelerated field training program. A POST certified police officer candidate wi ll relocate to the area on the first week of June, and will continue with the hiring process. Lieutenant Williams advised the department has advertised for both communications positions and police officer positions via the newspaper, magazines, and even lawn signs with the applicable sign-on bonuses posted. City Administrator Crowell stated the city has considered early payment of the bonuses, rather than waiting until the end of the training periods, to help attract more candidates. Lieutenant Williams made a note; if anyone has or knows of anyone with thoughts of wanting to join the department, direct them to talk to Lieutenant William or Lieutenant Stieferman for more information. Chief Schroeder stated the best recruiting tool is word-of-mouth. The job of a communications operator is not for everyone, though. It requires passion, and he hopes the department can find the people it desperately needs. He stated the vacancies are at the highest he has seen, but it is not just the police department. Chief Schroeder quoted, “40 million people have changed jobs since August 2021”, as stated in a media article. Every establishment is looking for new hires. He states he is satisfied with the department doing everything it can to hire, but dissatisfied with the number of candidates interested. In response to Councilman Spencer’s inquiry about April sales tax revenues, City Administrator Crowell stated, like every month, there is a delay in the data collection of total sales tax. 4 Captain Heislen advised there are four new police vehicles ready to be upfitted. The process of upfitting the new vehicles can take two to three weeks to get everything properly installed. New equipment had to be purchased because the equipment in the older vehicles would not fit in the new vehicles. The upfitting process is an ongoing process. There are still five vehicles that will be delivered, but their arrival dates are unknown. Captain Heislen states it may be close to a year to get all of the vehicles received, upfitted, and in service. Chief Schroeder added there are many projects underway. The department received an $11,548 High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas grant for the DEA taskforce officers for cellphones, fuel, investigation supplies, etc. The department received a $64,700 Combating Violent Extremism grant for civil disturbance protective gear. Officers were fitted for the gear on May 5, 2022. The License Plate Reader (LRP) project was granted $46,750 for the instruments and installment of the instruments to protect critical state infrastructures. The $180,000 grant application for the body-worn camera was submitted on May 24, 2022 with a total estimated project cost of $661,000. The project is projected to start on October 10, 2022 for a three-year period. Lieutenant Williams added the body-cameras are currently being tested in the field. Chief Schroeder also stated there are weekly meetings with the captains to review Lexipol policies. Other Updates In response to Councilman Spencer’s inquiry about a hiring updates for the Chief of Police, City Administrator Crowell stated the second round of interviews will take place next week, and there are no updates. Emergency Management Director Nick Tietsort stated the Emergency Management Program grant will pay 50% of the salary for an additional person. He plans to apply for the grant by June 6, 2022. Director Tietsort also stated the Cole County Fair and Fourth of July Celebration are coming up. The county is still searching for funding for the air show that may commence. Mayor Tergin stated the Jefferson City Fire Department annual golf tournament is being held on August 25, 2022, and they are still accepting sponsorship. The Mayor’s Cup golf tournament will be held on June 3, 2022. The Guns and Hoses hockey game will be held on August 27, 2022. Mayor Tergin advised the Law Enforcement Memorial was held on the first week of May. Mayor Tergin recognized the communications personnel for their hard work and dedication they have to the police department. Mayor Tergin stated it is the three-year anniversary for the tornado that hit Jefferson City and acknowledged the importance of training for emergencies and disasters. Mayor Tergin advised a candlelight vigil will be held tonight in honor of victims of recent mass shootings. Councilman Fitzwater thanked Lieutenant Williams for talking to the community about the Texas Shooting. He added that the police department should put more resources towards the School Resource Officers to keep our schools safe. He stated now is the time to redirect more resources, because safety for the schools is a top priority for the community. Chief Schroeder shared his concerns. He stated the expenses are shared between the police department and the school district. There are many cities where School Resource Officers are not supported, but Jefferson City is not one. Chief Schroeder stated there are currently eight School Resource Officers, and with the current staffing issues, implementing more School Resource Officers would be difficult. 5 Councilman Schreiber asked the committee to keep the families and first responders of the Texas shooting in their prayers. Adjourn Councilman Schreiber made a motion to adjourn. Councilman Spicer seconded the motion. Meeting was adjourned at 8:20 a.m.