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HomeMy WebLinkAbout20221215 - PSAC Minutes December 15, 2022 Public Safety Advisory Commission Meeting Minutes Present: Commissioners Dolores Pemble, Gary Stevens, Melissa Blackstad, and Theresa Auge`. City Staff: Chiefs Dave Wilske Guests: Kori Land, Hastings City Attorney Jamie Stevens: City Fire Inspector Andrew Caflisch: incoming PSAC member Chair Pemble called the meeting to order at 6: 30 pm. Commissioner Bryan Ascheman arrived at 6:31 pm. 1. A motion made by Commissioner Stevens and seconded by Commissioner Blackstad to approve the agenda. Motion passed unanimously. 2. A motion made by Commissioner Auge` and seconded by Commissioner Blackstad to approve the November 22, 2022 minutes. Motion passed unanimously. Welcome/Introductions: Mr. Caflisch and Inspector Stevens were introduced. Police Update: • Commission Membership: The commission has completed interviews for commission membership. Mr. Caflisch will be approved by city council at their meeting later this month. Mr. Gunter will be approved by CC on January 3rd, 2023. Both incoming commission members will assume their role on the commission in January. Commissioners Ascheman and Starkson will be recognized and thanked for their commission membership at the December 19th city council meeting. • Santa’s Sleigh also known as the mobile command unit will be following the city lights tour. There will be four stops on the route allowing citizens an opportunity to have their photo taken with Santa. Following the mobile command is NOT encouraged. Santa will be played by retired police chief Schafer. Chair Pemble will be assisting Santa. This event is weather dependent. • Police officer interviews continue with three applications moving to background check. • A department meeting was held in which several staff were awarded. Among the rewards was a “Medal of Valor” to Officer Nate Wood. Moving forward, an awards committee is being established. A supplemental document was provided to the commission on the variety of police awards. • Toys for Tots will be wrapping up this week. • Shop with a Hero was held at Fleet Farm. 15 kids were matched with various team members from our police, fire, and the Dakota sheriff’s departments. The event was well planned. Fire Update: • New fire truck has arrived, working out some service issues. Plan to have it in service soon. • Ambulance has arrived and at the vender. Plan to be in service soon. • 4 full time openings for fire fighters will be posted soon. • Paid on Call: 4 new positions will be starting this month. They will start with Fire Training and join the 4 others who have been in EMT training. This will bring the number up to 8 paid on call. Once the Fire Training is completed for the second group, they will move into EMT training. • In 2023 we hope to add more paid on call staff using the new recruitment video. • New air purifier systems will be added to all fire trucks. These units remove carcinogens from the air. The units will run for an hour after a call. • The aging fire truck and ambulance will be sold off once the new vehicles are in service. • A brief explanation of the role of our Fire Inspectors was provided. The commission hopes to have one of them back for continued conversation. • A reminder, Chief Townsend sent a link to the completed Fire Study. Inspector Stevens left the meeting at 6:55 pm. Old Business: Discussion: Chair Pemble led the conversation on the list of recommendations governing THC/ CBD products drafted by the commission last month. This list was discussed in detail with Kori Land. Commissioner Ascheman left the meeting at 7:31 pm after thanking the commission and in particular the police and fire departments. A motion was made by Commissioner Stevens and seconded by Blackstad to add to the list of recommendations; “Prohibiting restaurants with on sale license to sell THC products in any form.” This motion passed 3 to 1. The commission agreed to amend their initial recommendation of a licensing fee from 1500 – 2000 to 8,000 – 10,000. Rationale: Cities of Woodbury and Cottage Grove have 10,000 fees. The higher cost is to recover the expenses used to inspect and ensure compliance. A higher licensing cost would limit the number of places that sell these products. The commission agreed to add to their final report, language suggesting establishing some physical distance from schools, parks and playgrounds. A report will be drafted of the commission’s work on this topic and reviewed at the next meeting. New Business: • Self-Review of 2022 PSAC goals. The commission felt that much was accomplished. Next Meeting: January 19th, 2023. Adjournment: Commissioner Stevens moved and Commissioner Blackstad seconded to adjourn the meeting. The motion was passed unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 8:35 pm.