03/09/2009 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Search

New Initiatives in 2008 In March of 2008 the Lino Lakes Police Department (LLPD) took strides to strengthen the community involvement in Public Safety. The number of volunteers and the number of hours they were donating to the police department continued to increase. The organizational structure was adjusted to create the Community Relations Coordinator which became a command level position. This reflects the importance of the development and coordination of volunteer involvement with the police department. Through this move the utilization of volunteers throughout the organization can be coordinated so their time and skills are put to the hest use. Coordination of current volunteers as well as recruitment of future ones is now accomplished through one focal point. Service delivery was enhanced in May of 2008 when the police department vent from 2 part - time Community Service Officers (CSO) to 4 part -time CSO's. CSO's are college students enrolled in law enforcement / criminal justice programs that are employed 20 hours a week. Their duties expanded from the standard ordinance enforcement and animal complaint handlin�� to direct involvement in COP / POP. Each CSO was assigned to a specific geographical team and tasked with crime prevention projects that provided opportunities for greater positive contacts with the residents and business owners. Expansion of neighborhood and business crime watch groups is just one of the successes of this initiative. The CSO's also spend part of their hours assisting the front office staff. They enter records, transcribe tapes, prepare investigative files and their presence in the front office has allowed the police department to expand the front desk work week to 10 hours a day. This expansion of service time has proven very beneficial for those residents that need to interact with front office staff beyond the normal 8 — 4:30 hours. Staying open until 6 pm was on an initial trial phase, but due to its success it has been contin- ued. The Metro Gang Strike Force (MGSF) is made up of representatives from several law enforcement agencies. The main function of this unit is to investigate gang related criminal activity. Since January of 2008 the Lino Lakes Police Department has assigned a sworn officer to the MGSF. The department receives a $50,000 grant annually to offset the cost of having an officer there. During 2008 officers from the LLPD worked alongside the MGSF which provided learning opportunities for the LLPD officers. An investigation coordinated hctv%een the LLPD and the MGSF resulted in the arrest of a male for running a large marijuana growing operation in Lino Lakes. The MGSF investigator has also identified several documented gang members that reside, visit or work in our city. The education provided by the connection to the MGSF has resulted in a greater understanding of gang influences here in Lino Lakes. The Crime Free Multi - Housing program is designed to help owners and managers of rental properties keep drugs and other illegal activities off their property. The purpose of this program is not to serve the landlords, but to educate them and their tenants on improving.,the livability of the rental property by reducing crime. This program has proven effective in reducing crime in rental properties. Rental properties place larger numbers of people into more dense areas, thereby increasing opportunity for crime. It is found that adequate protection of public health and safety will improve in those developments that are certified under the Safer Tenants And Rentals (STAR) program. The corresponding city ordinance was enacted in 2007 with imple- mentation taking place in 2008. The purpose of this program is to protect the safety and general welfare of the City of Lino Lakes, to prevent crime in the Cite and to provide for the ad w i n i- stration and enforcement of the STAR program. 10