Tomorrow night, city officials will host a public meeting in Ballard to hear residents’ safety concerns.
The Seattle Police Department (SPD) and Seattle Department of Neighborhoods (DON) are co-hosting the Our City, Our Safety: Community Conversation meeting, open to the public and scheduled for 6-7:30 p.m. at the Loyal Heights Community Center (2101 NW 77th St).
Denise Colvin, the DON’s Community Capacity and Safety Manager, helped spearhead the new meeting series. The DON created her role just last year to center on “accountability and culturally responsive services,” overseeing contracts with neighborhood organizations that support community-led safety efforts in Ballard, the Chinatown–International District, South Park, and Capitol Hill.
Colvin’s role is designed to help city leaders understand what residents need to feel safe in their own neighborhoods. She and her team will host meetings throughout Seattle, recognizing that safety priorities in Ballard may look different from those in other parts of the city.
“We want to create opportunities for Seattle residents to interact with the police in a neighborly way so they can establish relationships and trust,” Colvin said. “This program is really focused on empowering people to share their needs and concerns and partner with us to develop community alternatives to policing and create a sustainable approach to safety.”
The city is also updating the Find It, Fix It mobile app to allow residents to report non-emergencies without contacting 911 and provide police with data for tracking crime patterns and investigations.
Photo: DON