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Police Adviosry Commission Minutes 01-19-2011Police Advisory Commission Minutes: 01/19/11 MINUTES MONTICELLO POLICE ADVISORY Wednesday, January 19, 2011- 7 p.m., Academy Room Monticello Community Center Members Present: Brad Fyle, Jason Roubinek, Leila McCarty, and Chuck Fradella Members Absent: Brian Stumpf Ex- Officio Representatives: Cpt. Dan Ansehnent - Wright County Sheriff's Department Sgt. Dave Anderson - Wright County Sheriff's Department Bruce Westby, City Engineer 1. Call to Order Brad Fyle called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm. 2. Moment of silence in remembrance of Dick Slais There was a moment of silence to honor the passing of Dick Slais and his eleven years of service to the Police Advisory Commission. 3. Approval of minutes of October 20, 2010 regular Police Advisory Commission meeting BRAD FYLE MOVED TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF THE OCTOBER 20, 2010 REGULAR POLICE ADVISORY COMMISSION MEETING. JASON ROUBINEK SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED 4 -0. 4. Consideration of adding items to the agenda a) Signage for District Sheriffs Office b) Snowmobiles C) Honoring Dick Slais 5. Wright County Sheriffs Office updates/ O &A session Criminal Activity: Dan Anselment provided information related to enforcement activity for the last quarter of 2010. Activity has begun to pick up overall compared to years past. There was no specific category of activity that had spiked over the years. Police Advisory Commission Minutes: 01/19/11 Winter Parking Ordinance: Parking tickets represented the largest increase in activity throughout the winter months. Officers made an effort to educate the public at the start of the season by handing out winter parking ordinance notices. Although there are typically some 100 -150 citations written throughout the season, more than 300 citations were written thus far due to continued snowfalls and the need to keep the streets clear of cars for plowing. The two officers handling parking violations in town find the workload to be manageable. The ordinance extends through April 15th. Traffic: The number of traffic tickets issued increased. Officers are typically monitoring traffic when not on a call for service. Revenue from traffic tickets goes to the County as per the law enforcement contract. Calls for Service: Calls for service increased slightly in the last quarter. No one type of service call increased more than another. Criminal Investigations: There had been a fair amount of financial fraud and theft in the last quarter. There continued to be push -outs and juvenile theft at Walmart. These crimes often involve lengthy investigation. Drug Use: The Narcotics Division had been busy dealing with thefts of prescription drugs and with juveniles stealing cold medications. Marijuana usage continued to be quite common. Schools: Crimes in school have decreased significantly. Some of the youth have been redirected to the Alternative Learning Program or are taking classes online. There have been a number of behavior issues in the 2d-3d grade classrooms. School social workers are working to keep that under control. Criminal Sexual Conduct: A third Level 3 Sex Offender, Jimmy McCarthy, is scheduled to move into the transitional housing on County Road 37. The Department of Corrections allows a maximum of three Level 3 offenders to be housed together. There will be five sex offenders living in the facility. Level 3 Sex Offenders are required to find permanent housing after a three month transitional housing period. The initial Level 3 Sex Offender is due to be released soon. He is having difficulty locating permanent housing. There have been no reported problems at the residence. Officers visit the residence frequently to perform compliance checks. There was a public meeting when the facility was first established. Sheriffs Deputies do mass mailings to residents in nearby neighborhoods and make personal visits to nearby homes when new sex offenders move in. Staffing: There are two new officers patrolling in Monticello. Dan Anselment has been promoted to Captain. His previous position as Lieutenant will be back - filled. He hopes to stay active in the Monticello Police Advisory Commission. Police Advisory Commission Minutes: 01/19/11 6. Update on appointments to the Police Advisory Commission City Council reappointed Brad Fyle to the Police Advisory Commission for another three year term. Glen Posusta continues to be the alternate City Council member to the Commission. Chuck Fradella's current term will expire on December 31St, 2011. 7. Consideration of adopting a Mission Statement for the Police Advisory Commission Leila McCarty asked that Commission members share their efforts at revising mission statements initially drafted at the previous meeting. She underlined that a mission statement should address its customers and should establish what the Commission does rather than how it does it. Chuck Fradella presented his draft mission statement. • To improve communication and understanding between the police department, residents, business owners and the City Council by educating the City Council on law enforcement issues and acting as a go- between for the public and law enforcement and the City by means of respect, honesty and impartiality at all times Jason Roubinek presented several draft mission statements. • Offering guidance as a liaison between law enforcement and City Council • Objectively impacting the quality of life for the City of Monticello • Objectively voicing the opinion of the citizens of Monticello as a liaison to the Council and law enforcement • Offering guidance and integrity between residents and the Council members as a liaison to law enforcement After brief consideration, the Commission determined it would be most appropriate to vote on a mission statement when the full Commission was present in April. Copies of each draft were distributed. Members will bring back one mission statement each for the next meeting. Drafts of potential mission statements may be exchanged with Leila McCarty by email prior to the meeting. 8. Discussion of added items a) Signage for District Sheriff's Office The Sheriff's Office asked for Commission input on the language to be used on signage for the office space they utilize in Monticello. City Administrator Jeff O'Neill had suggested that the sign convey that the Sheriff's Office provides law enforcement to Monticello. Dan Anselment presented various options for the Commission to consider: Police Advisory Commission Minutes: 01/19/11 • Wright County Sheriff - Monticello District Office • Monticello Police Services Office • Monticello Law Enforcement Services Office • Wright County Sheriff - Monticello's Law Enforcement There was some discussion about how the City doesn't have its own police force and that the public isn't aware that the Sheriff s Office provides coverage for Monticello. The Commission agreed that it seemed most appropriate to convey that message by selecting language that clarified the relationship. They chose to recommend Wright County Sheriff - Monticello's Law Enforcement for the language on the sign and will discuss this option with Jeff O'Neill. The sign will utilize space on the existing FiberNet sign. The sign will be a maximum of 6 ft wide and 24 inches high. The Sheriffs Office will cover the cost of the sign but will ask for City staff assistance assembling it. The Sheriff's Office plans to announce their new location to citizens through a utility bill mailing, and articles in the newsletter and the local newspaper. The office is not staffed 24 -7 but citizens are encouraged to stop in when staff are available. b) Snowmobiles Although it is peak season for snowmobiles, officers were surprised that there hadn't been many snowmobile complaints this year. There were only a few complaints so far. In past years typical trouble spots included Meadow Oak Avenue and the corner of School Boulevard and Edmonson Avenue where a property owner installed horseshoe pits. Sheriff s Deputies helped install better signage at these locations which has seemed to help. Deputies are patrolling the City and surrounding trails on snowmobiles two to three times a day during weekdays, as well as every weekend, which has helped keep violators in check. Property damage hadn't been an issue. Officers were provided copies of the snowmobiling ordinance to help address any questions. Snowmobilers are allowed to take the most direct route through the City between their homes and the trails. C) Honoring Dick Slais Chuck Fradella asked that the Commission consider purchasing a plaque in memory of Dick Slais. This could be either a gift to his family or displayed in a public place. He had drafted an example and got an initial price quote of $80. He indicated that there may be less expensive vendors in the area. The Commission noted that Dick had recently received a plaque at retirement for ten years of service to the Police Advisory Commission. Bruce Westby suggested that there may be an option to use some of the funds budgeted for Outstanding Citizen Recognition Awards for this purpose. There was much discussion about various ways in which to honor Dick. Some other ideas were to name the Outstanding Police Advisory Commission Minutes: 01/19/11 Citizen Recognition Award after Dick or to plant a tree in his name. The Commission agreed it might be best to talk to the Slais family and discuss this again in April when the full Commission convenes prior to reaching a decision. 9. Schedule next meeting The next regular Police Advisory Commission meeting was scheduled for Wednesday, April 20, 2011 @ 7 PM. 10. Adiourn CHUCK FRADELLA MOVED TO ADJOURN THE MEETING AT 8:04 PM. MOTION WAS SECONDED BY LEILA MCCARTY. MOTION CARRIED 4 -0. Recorder: Kerry T. Bum Approved: April 20, 2011 Attest: Bruce Westby, City Engineer