West Cook News

Village of Western Springs Public Health & Safety Committee met June 18.

Here is the minutes provided by the committee:

Members Present: Scott Lewis, Chair Alan Fink, Trustee

Staff Present: Chief Brian Budds, LES Chief Patrick Kenny, Fire & EMS Deputy Chief Mike Kelly, Fire & EMS Shaun O'Connor, LES

Staff Not Present: Deputy Chief Daniel Albrecht, LES

Others Present: Alice Gallagher, Village President Ingrid Velkme, Village Manager

Public Present: None

Electronic Attendance: This meeting was conducted via Zoom online platform in accordance with Illinois Governor Executive Orders: Number 2020-07 dated March 16, 2020, Number 2020-10 dated March 20, 2020, and Number 2020-18 dated April 1, 2020 ("Stay at Home" Order).

#1 Call to Order

The meeting was called to order at 8:01 a.m. on Thursday, June 18, 2020.

#2 Roll Call

President Alice Gallagher and Manager Ingrid Velkme were also present.

#3 Approval of minutes - May 7, 2020

MOTION: Chair Lewis requested a motion to approve the minutes of the May 7,

2020 meetings. Trustee Fink made the motion, Chair Lewis seconded, and the minutes were approved by unanimous vote.

#4 Public Comment

None

#5 Retirement Recognition for Police Sergeant John Piest

Chief Budds reported that this is the third Sergeant to retire in the last year. There has been a lot of change in the Department. Chief Budds requests Chair Lewis recognize Sergeant John Piest at the upcoming Board Meeting. Sergeant Piest will be retiring on July 9, 2020, after 24 years of dedicated service to the Village of Western Springs.

During Sergeant Piest's tenure, he has proudly served in both the Patrol and Detective Divisions and held various titles including Patrol and Detective Sergeant, Firearms Program Instructor, and Youth Peer Jury Coordinator. He is also a graduate of Northwestern University's Center for Public Safety Staff and Command and holds a Bachelor's Degree from Lewis University.

Sergeant Piest has been a tremendous asset to the Department.

Chair Lewis stated he will recognize Sergeant Piest at the Board Meeting.

#6 CALEA re-accreditation update - verbal report

Chief Budds reported on the CALEA re-accreditation that occurred on June 1-3, 2020. The onsite went well and was considered a success. There were several interviews done via Zoom or over the phone that went well. The assessors went over the Department's file beforehand. Our Accreditation Manager Daisy Chavez did an amazing job and Director Schramm did a great job coordinating all the meetings. This was the first time for this to be a virtual onsite for any of us, including CALEA. Chief Budds anticipates a full Re-accreditation at the December hearing at the awards banquet. He is not sure if there will be an in-person awards ceremony or if it will be virtual but the Department should receive its sixth reaccreditation.

Chair Lewis asked to clarify when the official word comes from CALEA on the reaccreditation. Chief Budds confirmed it will be in December.

#7 Overview of Police Department training & policies.

Chief Budds reported that there have been many inquiries from residents about the Western Springs Police Department's training standards and policies primarily related to the use of force and cultural sensitivity. The situation that occurred in Minneapolis and other recent events across the nation, have caused a lot of damage to community relations. We have a competitive advantage due to having great trust with the community. We already have solid policies and procedures, in part due to our accreditation.

The Department has a very comprehensive training program that is conducted through on-site, online, or classroom training. Several of our training programs focus on cultural competency and anti-biased based policing. There may be newly mandated training that comes with a cost that may need budgeting and there may be new mandates that come from the state.

Since 2018, this department along with several others signed on and adopted the Ten Shared Principles. This was a collaborative effort between the Illinois Chiefs of Police and the Illinois NAACP Illinois State Conference. This is displayed in our Police Department and we also did a Facebook post that had approximately 2,500 views.

Chief Budds asks Chair Lewis to report on this memo to the Village Board. Chair Lewis asks that Chief Budds should report on this topic as well at the meeting. President Gallagher responds that she agrees that Chief Budds should have a few minutes to speak at the meeting.

Chief Budds added that the demonstration last week went well. There were a lot of comments from parents that they openly supported the Department and thanked them for what they do.

President Gallagher asks that the Chief report on the demonstration that occurred as well and if he could include a copy of the Ten Shared Principles.

#8 Declare Surplus Equipment

Chief Kenny reported that annually the Fire Department tests their hose to make sure it meets National Fire Protection Association (NFPR) standards. There are several lengths of hose that did not pass that test. Usually, they have a hose that past the standards but are over 25 years old and they will be taken out of service and donated to volunteer departments' downstate. These hoses are all leaking and will be disposed of. A few have been repurposed for DPW to use to refill water trucks.

MOTION: Chair Lewis made a motion to move the declaration of surplus equipment to the Board for approval, Trustee Fink seconded, and the motion was approved by unanimous vote.

#9 Fire Department Operational Update

Chief Kenny went over the Fire Department's Operational Update to the current public situation. The Fire Department, like the Police Department, has had to make some changes to how they do business. The majority of our staff are the paid-on-call staff.

One of the biggest concerns was having a paramedic become infected since there are only six. The fire Department created a sort of bench of extra paramedics which included the Deputy Chief, the Fire Marshal, and one of the Division Chiefs. At the same time, one of the contract medics retired in April. The Fire Marshal and Division Chief worked shifts to give the staff breaks.

There also had to be a modification on how to respond to a call. When there is a call, everyone's pager goes off and they can respond for the call or to staff the station in case there are other calls. That had to be modified to when they came in and how they would respond. The department uses internet-based programming called I Am Responding. There needed to be a change that use to include the staff would punch in stating they are responding but they were not to leave the house unless there was a second tone out for the manpower.

Monday night training was suspended in March but has since restarted. Monday night training is now four different hour-long sessions as opposed to the usual 4-hour session. The sessions are broken up between the two stations and are from 7 pm to 8 pm and 8:15 pm to 9:15 pm. They are only getting a third-time wise training from before.

This has taken a lot of flexibility from the staff and their dedication is powerful and is consistent with the people we have here.

Engine 1711 has gone down twice in the last month. Normally, Monday through Friday from 9am to 6 pm station two is occupied because close to 70% of the calls during that time is south of the tracks. There was a change due to the engine being down, the staffing is at station two 24/7. During the time that we are staffed at the south station, the Hinsdale Fire Department is also toned out at the same time. Their station is north of the tracks and they may get out the door faster. They were asked to honor that agreement 24/7, which they agreed.

Chair Lewis asked how long it would take to get the engine back up and running. Chief Kenny reports that it would be early to mid-next week or as late as the end of the week.

President Gallagher asked Chief Kenny if the agreement with Hinsdale is reciprocal. Chief Kenny confirmed that it was and we can respond on the south end of the town faster than they can if they are caught by a train in their town.

#10 Other Business

None.

#11 Adjournment

MOTION: Chair Lewis asked for a motion to adjourn. Trustee Fink made a motion to adjourn. Chair Lewis seconded the motion. The motion to adjourn was approved by a unanimous vote at 8:31 a.m.

https://www.wsprings.com/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_06182020-1072