Advisory Committee On Police-Community Relations To Host Virtual Town Hall

Press release from the City of Peoria:

The Advisory Committee on Police-Community Relations advises the Chief of Police, the Mayor and City Council on matters to improve police-community relations. As a committee that provides independent means of communication and assistance between the citizens of Peoria and the Peoria Police Department, engaging with residents is one of the top priorities for this volunteer-run group. In the past, the committee held several in-person meetings in different zip codes with a large turnout of residents. Based on that success, the public is invited to participate in a virtual townhall to discuss the relationship between the community and the police.

The purpose of this meeting is to provide an opportunity for residents to provide ideas and feedback to the committee. The meeting will be in ZOOM format, but there will also be a phone number available for those who do not have internet access. The meeting will be recorded and housed on the City of Peoria YouTube channel, cityofpeoriatv.

Andre Allen, Chair of the Committee on Police-Community Relations, encourages the public to attend as their voices are vital to the ongoing discussion. He stated, “Our goal is that these virtual townhalls allow our citizens to be heard and that their comments are used to improve community and police relations through shared experience. We also want to highlight the true purpose of our committee, so that we are utilized as a useful tool for the community.”

Townhalls are scheduled for January 7, February 4, and March 4. All meetings will begin at 6:00pm and conclude an hour later. After the first three townhalls, the committee and other stakeholders will convene to evaluate and review the comments.

Please note space is limited. If you’d like to attend the January 7 townhall, please email Christina Kirby at ckirby@peoriagov.org by end of day on Tuesday, January 5. You will be provided with further instruction after receipt of that email. You can also call 309.494.8335.

If you are unable to attend but would like a public comment to be read into the record, please email Ms. Kirby at the above email address by noon on January 5. Public comments will be read into the record at the end of the meeting. Please note that comments will be limited to five minutes. The meeting will conclude at 7:00 p.m. Any comments not read at this meeting will be read at the following meeting in February.

Additional information on the Advisory Committee on Police-Community Relations can be found on the City’s website http://www.peoriagov.org/boards-commissions/

This press release was produced by the City of Peoria. The views expressed here are the author’s own.