Explanation
This legislation authorizes the Director of Public Safety to modify a contract with Community Crime Patrol, Inc. to continue to assist the Division of Police in identifying suspicious activities indicative of criminal behavior and reporting them. Community Crime Patrol provides teams of patrollers who monitor the residential neighborhoods. It also assists other City departments in reporting code enforcement, water/sewer, and street lighting issues. The duration of this agreement will continue to be from March 1, 2024 through February 28, 2025 or until funds are exhausted. Community Crime Patrol is funded by the City of Columbus and the East Main Street Special Improvement District. The modification will add $75,000.00 for the existing term of the contract in order to allow Community Crime Patrol to continue services uninterrupted and to cover administrative costs for programming.
FISCAL IMPACT: The funding of $75,000.00 is available within the Public Safety Initiatives subfund.
EMERGENCY ACTION is requested in order to ensure the continuation of the program without interruption.
Title
To authorize the Director of the Department of Public Safety to modify a contract with Community Crime Patrol, Inc., a non-profit organization, to continue to provide citizen patrollers to assist the Division of Police in the control and prevention of crime in residential neighborhoods; to authorize the appropriation and expenditure of $75,000.00 from the Public Safety Initiatives subfund; and to declare an emergency. ($75,000.00)
Body
WHEREAS, the Department of Public Safety's 2024 general fund operating budget allocates funding to contract with Community Crime Patrol, Inc. for the patrol of City of Columbus neighborhoods; and,
WHEREAS, the Community Crime Patrol, Inc. provides citizen patrollers in these areas who assist the Division of Police in identifying suspicious activities indicative of criminal behavior and reporting them;
and,
WHEREAS, additional funds are necessary to continue current operations and for administration of programming; and
WHEREAS, $75,000.00 is available within the Public Safety Initiatives subfund for this purpose; and
WHEREAS, an emergency exists in the usual daily operation of the Department of Public Safety in that it is immediately necessary to authorize the Director to enter into a contract with Community Crime Patrol, Inc. to ensure the continuation of the program without interruption and that patrollers are paid for their services of disrupting criminal activities, for the immediate preservation of the public health, peace, property, and safety; now, therefore,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS:
SECTION 1. That the Director of the Department of Public Safety is hereby authorized to modify a contract with Community Crime Patrol, Inc. for the purpose of providing citizen patrollers to assist the Division of Police in the identification and reporting of suspicious activity. The contract period will remain from March 1, 2024 through February 28, 2025 or until funds are exhausted.
SECTION 2. That the City Auditor is hereby authorized and directed to appropriate $75,000.00 in the Public Safety Initiatives subfund, fund 1000, subfund 100016, to the Department of Public Safety per the accounting codes in the attachment to this ordinance.
SECTION 3. That the expenditure of $75,000.00 or so much thereof as may be needed pursuant to the action authorized in SECTION 1, is hereby authorized in the Public Safety Initiatives subfund, fund 1000, subfund 100016, per the accounting codes in the attachment to this ordinance.
SECTION 4. That the funds necessary to carry out the purpose of this ordinance are hereby deemed appropriated, and the City Auditor shall establish such accounting codes as necessary.
SECTION 5. That the City Auditor is authorized to make any accounting changes to revise the funding source for all contracts or contract modifications associated with this ordinance.
SECTION 6. That for the reasons stated in the preamble hereto, which is hereby made a part hereof, this ordinance is hereby declared to be an emergency measure and shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage and approval by the Mayor, or ten days after passage if the Mayor neither approves nor vetoes the same.