A Public Safety Service EvalMEMORANDUM
CITYOF
CHANHASSEN
7700 Ma%.t Boule,~ard
PO Be;,. !47
Chanhasse~ MN 55317
Administration
Pr ouer 952 2271100
Fax 9522271110
Building Inspections
Phone 952 227 1180
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EngineerinD
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Finance
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Park & Recreation
Pr!c:r ~..: 952227 1120
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R,~ _a,~h udtu
2310 Coulter BouleYard
Phone 952 2271400
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Planning &
Natural Resources
Phone 952 227 1130
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Public Works
1591 Park Road
P~ore 952227 1300
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Senior 6enter
Phoqe 952 2271125
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Web Sile
TO:
Todd Gerhardt, City Manager
FROM:
DATE:
Justin Miller, Assistant to the City Manager~/,,
July 29, 2004 6)~
RE:
Public Safety Service Evaluation
BACKGROUND
One of the City Council's goals for 2004 is to evaluate public safety services
within the City of Chanhassen. Staff has contacted Jim Prosser from Ehlers and
Associates to perform an analysis that will have the following components:
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
Identifying Issues and Concerns
Review the 2005 Police Contract
Provide for Public Feedback and Education
Draft Report and Recommendations
Submittal of Evaluation Report to Council
Recommendation Implementation
The review will be performed by Richard Setter and Donald Davis, outside
consultants who have an extensive background in public safety. Mr. Setter is the
former chief of police for the cities of St. Louis Park and Minnetonka. Mr. Davis
is the former chief of police in Brooklyn Park and also served as Commissioner of
the Minnesota Department of Public Safety. Their proposal is attached to this
report and Jim Prosser will be at the meeting to answer any questions.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff would like to receive guidance from the Council in regards to the public
safety evaluation plan so that a report can be provided by the end of the year.
The City of Chanhassen · ,a, 8rowug commLxq?.y ¢~iti~ c'.(}ar~ lakes quality scl oois. a charming dov, otowri, ti~riving businesses winding trails, an1 L.~auri,ul parks A groat place to live. work. arid play
Chanhassen Public Safety
Ehlers & Associates Proposal for Service Evaluation
Introduction
The purpose of this proposal is to recommend a process for an evaluation of
Chanhassen's delivery of Public Safety services that will include six steps:
· Identifying Issues and Concerns;
· Review of the 2005 police contract;
· Providing for Public Feedback and Education;
· Drafting Report and making Recommendations;
· Submitting the Evaluation Report for Council Analysis; and,
· Implementing recommendations.
The purpose of Public Safety in any community is to ensure that people are safe and that
they feel safe. The evaluation of Public Safety Services that the City will be undertaking
will be directed at addressing both of these issues - actual safety and perception of safety
- in the community.
As a result, this Proposal includes a public participation component, which will enable
the City to receive feedback from the public and, at the same time, provide public
education concerning the delivery of Public Safety Services.
Ehlers & Associates will conduct the evaluation with the assistance of Public Safety
consultants Richard Setter and Donald Davis, who have 73 years of combined experience
in Public Safety. Mr. Setter spent 38 years in public service including 24 years as Chief
of Police in the Cities of St. Louis Park and Minnetonka, and the last seven years as
Director of Public Safety (Police, Fire, Emergency Management.) Mr. Davis has 35
years experience in public safety and criminal justice and is a former Commissioner of
the Minnesota Department of Public Safety, and the former Chief of Police in the City of
Brooklyn Park.
Evaluation Process
Step 1 - Identifying Issues and Concerns
The Public Safety consultants will work with elected officials and staff to identify Public
Safety issues and list any questions and concerns that they have or that they believe the
public may have, regarding the delivery of Public Safety Services in the City of
Chanhassen. The Consultants will categorize and list the issues, which will be used to
help structure, an open house to obtain feedback from the public.
Step 2 - Review of the 2005 Police Contract
The Public Safety consultants will review the 2005 Police Contract with Carver County
to accomplish the following:
Review the scope of services within the contract to assess that the services
meet the needs for community protection.
· Review methods to measure that services included in contract are being
delivered.
· Identify potential effectiveness and efficiency measures for contract
performance.
Step 3 - Providing for Public Feedback and Education
The Public Safety consultants and City staff will host an open house with board exhibits
designed to explore the public's questions and concerns, as well as provide education
concerning various areas of the City's Public Safety services. The open house will
include the following elements:
· Share basic facts on the current public safety services and how those services
compare with other similar sized cities.
· The consultant team will prepare an analysis of quantifiable public safety indicators
(e.g., essential Public Safety agency components, comparisons of sworn and non-
sworn personnel, crime rate/population ratios and other pertinent data comparisons. ).
This information will be made available at the open house.
· The public will provide feedback to the consultants at the open house by completing
feedback survey forms and providing one-on-one feedback with staff and Public
Safety consultants.
We recommend public communications prior to the open house that would potentially
include a project Q&A newsletter, city newsletter article (if timing permits), web site
article, and news release.
Step 4- Drafting Report and Making Recommendations
The consultant/staff team will compile feedback issues, analyze them, and prepare a
report (Issues Report) summarizing the analysis and providing a list of issues identified
during the analysis. The Issues Report will be reviewed with the City Council. The
Council will then select which items they feel require further analysis. The
consultant/staff team will then prepare a report of options, timelines and costs to address
identified issues (Options Report).
Step 5 - Submitting the Evaluation Report for Council Analysis
The Council will review the Options Report and select options for further review,
planning or implementation. The Consultant/Staff team will then complete the review
and prepare a schedule for completion of each task.
Step 6 - Implementing Recommendations
The final step in the evaluation of the City's Public Safety Services will be for the City
Council to determine what issues are to be implemented as a result of the Evaluation,
including the schedule for implementation, along with the allocation of the necessary
resources for such implementation.
The City Council would provide Public Safety Services information to the public through
various means such an open house follow-up, a project Q&A newsletter, an article in the
city newsletter article and a city news release.