EVERETT — The Everett Police Department is updating its strategic plan, and it’s asking people for help.
The plan acts as a guiding document for the department, Police Chief Dan Templeman said. But it hasn’t been updated since it was created in 2013, and a lot has changed in that time.
Notably missing from the 2013 documents are current hot topics like opioids, homelessness, mental illness, gangs and youth gun violence.
Templeman hopes the updated plan, to be released this spring, will reflect today’s concerns and give renewed focus on some complicated issues.
“It’s not something we’re going to resolve in a year, or alone,” Templeman said. “It’s going to take the community to address the root causes.”
To help, the department is asking people to fill out a survey on the department’s website. Responses will be accepted through Jan. 31.
The survey asks respondents to grade how safe they feel, how well they think police are doing and issues where they would like to see more focus.
Such input was important in the creation of the 2013 plan, Templeman said. As a result, the department made quality of life one of its focuses, doubling down on code enforcement such as derelict properties and abandoned vehicles.
The survey could become a more regular, perhaps annual event, Templeman said. Not only will the surveys keep the strategic plan from becoming stale, it’ll give more data on how well police are doing.
“It’s important as a governmental entity that we’re always evaluating our importance and evaluating our effectiveness in the community, in ways other than just crime statistics,” Templeman said.
Zachariah Bryan: 425-339-3431; zbryan@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @zachariahtb.
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