Special Meeting of the Berkeley City Council – October 29, 2024

This special work session, held at 3:30 PM at the School District Board Room, focused on two key items: a status report on the Reimagining Public Safety initiative and the CityGate workload and organizational study of the Berkeley Police Department. The meeting included presentations from city staff, CityGate consultants, Police Chief Jen Lewis, and the Director of Police Accountability, followed by public comment and council discussion. Councilmember Terry Taplin participated remotely under AB 2449 due to emergency circumstances, approved by a 5-0 vote.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Anaya Shergill (UC Berkeley student): Urged terminating the use of rental police on campus, citing poor response to threats and lack of accountability for private security personnel.
• Unnamed speaker (in person): Criticized the SCU for lack of cooperation with police, noting a situation where neither responded after three referrals. Also expressed concern that the domestic violence proposal does not fully incorporate community and provider experiences.
• Blair Beekman (Zoom): Praised the city’s academic approach to reimagining public safety, and encouraged continued community-centered work.
• Ilana Auerbach (Zoom): Noted that the original goal was to reduce police footprint by 50%, now lost in the "reimagine" framing. Criticized delays in gun violence prevention program (GVIP) after $2 million allocated, stating three teens were killed during the delay. Also expressed concern that 13% of SCU responses involved police, undermining trust in the service.
• Unnamed speaker (in person on CityGate): Highlighted lack of community policing and poor officer visibility; encouraged attending CIT conferences for officer wellness and crisis response models.
• Emily Raguso (Berkeley Scanner): Commended BPD’s responsiveness to public information requests, calling it a model agency.
• Kelly Hamkrin (Zoom): Questioned how reducing overtime will affect officers dependent on higher income.

Discussion Items

1. Reimagining Public Safety Status Report

• City Manager's office (Carianna Arredondo) presented an overview of the initiative, moving into Phase 3. Key updates included:
  • Office of DEI (Rex Brown): Integrating anti-racism and equity; planning an RFP for a reparations process consultant.
  • Specialized Care Unit (SCU) (Scott Gilman): Since September 2023, received over 1,500 calls, dispatched to ~800, with 700 resolved without police. Currently moving toward 24/7 operation by December 2024. Average 3–7 calls per day. Staffing and pay challenges noted.
  • Language equity: Translating key resources into Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean, Vietnamese, Tagalog; more languages available upon request.
  • Youth programs: Berkeley High Wellness Center logged over 1,120 student visits; McGee Avenue Baptist Church and Berkeley Youth Alternative funded for violence prevention; over 1,600 individual and 900 group counseling sessions provided.
  • Gun Violence Intervention and Prevention (GVIP): $2 million investment; contract with Live Free USA and partners; soft launch begun.
  • Vision Zero: Staffing vacancies slowing progress; projects on Adeline and San Pablo underway.
  • Dispatch needs assessment: Recommended implementing priority dispatch protocols (estimated $375,000 for three sets plus training) to improve triage and alternative response. Turnover rate higher than national average; replacing a telecommunicator costs ~$200,000.
• Council questions/comments:
  • Councilmember Lunaparra expressed concern that SCU materials imply it is only for substance abuse/mental health; asked for clearer scope. Also raised pay and retention issues.
  • Councilmember Tregub asked about SCU hours and education efforts; noted confusion among multiple emergency numbers. Called for refined call analysis to identify more calls suitable for non-police response.
  • Councilmember Humbert reserved comments until after CityGate report.
  • Councilmember Bartlett stressed need to rework SCU to be more robust and noted possible resource leakage due to provider serving multiple jurisdictions.

2. CityGate Workload and Organizational Study of the Police Department

• Stuart Gary (CityGate): Emphasized that recommendations are complementary, not either-or; alternative response is a steep hill but Berkeley is climbing.
• Richard Ward (CityGate): Presented findings from data analysis, interviews, and a staff survey (68 responses). Key findings: 60 officers in patrol is unsustainable; 34,000 hours of overtime in patrol; call volume and time on scene increasing; officer-initiated activity declined; morale concerns due to burnout. Recommendations include:
  • Add 15 officers to patrol (4 to teams 1,2,3; 3 to weekend team 7) plus 5 CSOs.
  • Modify use-of-force reporting for Level 1 (lowest level) to reduce administrative burden; report still documented but sergeant response not required unless body camera fails.
  • Add dispatchers, a cold case detective, second school resource officer, additional crime scene technician, traffic enforcement personnel, and civilian jail manager.
  • Expand use of CSOs for tasks like report writing and towing.
  • Improve span of control in records and dispatch.
• Chief Jen Lewis: Agreed with themes of sworn resource allocation, organizational health, CSO expansion, and process efficiency. Highlighted progress with All-Star recruiting (5x more applicants). Goal: add 5 officers annually for 3-5 years. Plans to build a flexible response team. SCU currently handles ~1% of calls but potential for 12%; CSOs could handle 7-10%. Committed to implementing priority recommendations within existing budget.
• Police Accountability Board (Hansel Aguilar reading Leah Wilson's remarks): Urged formal adoption of comparator agencies and response time standards before adding positions; recommended redistributing work to CSOs, evaluating SCU impact, addressing internal culture, and not lowering use-of-force reporting requirements. Also called for CSOs to be under PAB oversight.
• Council discussion:
  • Vice Mayor Wengraf focused on dispatch staffing and space; current 23 dispatchers vs. 36 target. Supported hiring more dispatchers and noted police are expensive to use for non-emergency tasks.
  • Councilmember Humbert thanked all involved, emphasized the need for balanced priorities given budget constraints, and supported adding a second school resource officer.
  • Councilmember Lunaparra aligned with PAB concerns about lowering use-of-force reporting; argued that increasing police staffing before fully implementing alternative response contradicts the original reimagine goal.
  • Councilmember Tregub asked about community policing vision; Chief Lewis emphasized relationship-building through proactive patrol and flex teams. Also discussed mental wellness programs and preference for peer-to-peer support. Supported revisiting Level 1 reporting with safeguards.
  • Mayor Arreguin reflected on the initiative's progress over four years, noting that reimagining and supporting police are not mutually exclusive. Stressed need for realistic staffing projections (reaching 181 officers likely by 2032) and urged sustainable funding for both police and community programs. Dispatch is central to a diversified response; proposed an eventual omnibus Department of Community Safety.

Key Outcomes

• No formal votes on the substance; this was a work session to provide feedback.
• Procedural vote: Council approved Councilmember Taplin’s remote participation under AB 2449 (5-0).
• Council adjourned at approximately 5:15 PM (prior to the 6:00 PM regular meeting).
• Next steps: Staff will incorporate council comments into implementation of the CityGate report and Reimagining Public Safety Phase 3. A follow-up report is expected in spring/summer 2025, focusing on dispatch assessment and SCU progress.