Office of Community Safety gives quarterly update to city council March 19 2025

March 19, 2025 (MINNEAPOLIS) At the Minneapolis City Council’s Public Health and Safety Committee meeting held today, Community Safety Commissioner Toddrick Barnette and the Minneapolis Office of Community Safety (OCS) leaders highlighted how their combined mission to deliver a coordinated, comprehensive, and equitable safety services continues making positive strides toward a safer Minneapolis. These steps taken in the first quarter of 2025 include developing new and innovative programs, recruiting and training staff, and ensuring accountability and transparency so the City can provide the right response at the right time.

“The vision we are working towards is a city where all people feel safe, social disparities are eliminated, and all residents can access opportunities and resources,” said Commissioner Barnette. “The updates today from the OCS departments highlight the important work we are doing, along with our partners within the Enterprise and community, toward that goal and I commend the innovation and collaboration that is helping us move our safety work forward in the right direction.”

Commissioner Barnette said that in the push toward a safer Minneapolis and the coordination of City and community resources, the City remains committed to meeting the requirements of the Settlement Agreement with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights. He reported that the independent evaluator, ELEFA, published its first bi-annual progress report, which showed and credited the City's progress towards compliance. Commissioner Barnette added that the work of OCS and the City Enterprise continues to seek true, lasting change for the City when it comes to policing and community safety.

OCS Director of Design and Implementation Amanda Harrington gave an update on carrying out the recommendations of the Safe and Thriving Communities Plan and the NYU Policing Project’s Asset and Gaps report released last year. This includes the coordination of City services within the community safety ecosystem and trying to understand how each department can contribute to the City’s vision. Director Harrington described formation of the Safe and Thriving Committee Work Group, the progress of the Community Safety Center initiative and the development of new pilot programs, such as the new Community Safety Ambassador pilot which will launch in May along parts of the Lake Street and Franklin Avenue corridors. More information and other updates can be found on the community safety ecosystem webpages.

Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) Assistant Chief Christopher Gaiters described how new proactive policing efforts and the ongoing hard work of MPD officers has resulted in a drop in many types of crime across the City, such as 32% fewer gunshot victims and more than 40% fewer robberies and carjackings year to date. Additionally, following the recent priority OCS and the City placed on recruiting, MPD showed an increase of 133% in applications over the past year, leading to new hires including 18 new officers joining the force in a graduation ceremony on January 30 – including 3 legacy officers that are children of current MPD officers. Another academy graduation of 12 recruits will occur in the following quarter, along with the dedication of a memorial to fallen MPD Officer Jamal Mitchell at the 5th Precinct and a series of Focused Enforcement Details with MPD’s many law enforcement partners.

Neighborhood Safety Department’s Deputy Director Lea Lakes identified three critical priorities for the 2nd quarter. First would be achieving full staffing levels. A second priority is implementing financial management practices to ensure financial transparency and accountability in the contracts for YGVI/ GVI, MinneapolUS and other NSD programs that will see new Requests for Proposals (RFP’s) in the coming weeks and months. Third would be identifying clear metrics and reporting requirements to better track performance and inform the deployment of NSD, City, and vendor resources. To help with this, vendors will also be provided with regular training sessions, dedicated NSD office hours, and improved communication channels.

Minneapolis Fire Chief Bryan Tyner announced that a new Academy class of 21 fire cadets is set to commence in April. This is in addition to 19 interns who joined the 2025 Cohort of the MFD EMS Pathways Academy last week, where participants complete the process of obtaining their Emergency Medical Technician Certification in preparation for employment in the EMS field to include Firefighter. Promotional tests for captains and battalion chiefs will occur in Quarter 2, as will the implementation of software to upgrade MFD’s incident reporting. MFD is also continuing the process of integrating the Behavioral Crisis Response contract into the department.

911/Minneapolis Emergency Communications Center Director Joni Hodne told Council members that new software was introduced to reduce the time taken to address abandoned calls, and radio technology was upgraded to ensure continuity in case of any communications failures. Efforts to recruit experienced staff was ongoing, however the dispatch center was nearly fully staffed for the first time in several years. MECC will look to fill those positions and provide promotion opportunities for current staff. MECC is also working to ensure that all technology is operational for the new MPD 1st Precinct.

Minneapolis’ Emergency Management Department found itself fully-staffed last month as newly-appointed Director Rachel Sayre developed a 5-year vision for the department. EMD continued community outreach efforts with its Ready Camp in January, where residents of all ages learn basic skills for preparing for an emergency during the two-day program. EMD is enhancing the City’s public warning and alert system through testing of the RAVE system and the City’s sirens. EMD also continues to lead the City’s overall response reform through tabletop and other exercises to improve coordination between departments and City leadership. EMD is also looking towards potential hazards over the next 2 quarters, such as air quality, H5N1 bird flu, an sever weather impacts.

OCS will plan to provide City Council with its next quarterly update this summer. The PHS committee meeting can be found on the City’s Youtube page. Information about OCS and the departments under its umbrella can be found on the City’s website.