City of Lakewood Dedicates American Rescue Plan Act Dollars to Public Safety Initiatives

$1.9 million in funds will be used to pay for Ambassadors at city parks and add more officers to address capacity needs

Last Monday, Mayor Meghan F. George’s recommendation to use $1.9 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars on public safety needs was unanimously approved by Lakewood City Council. The Mayor’s plan for the ARPA funds includes: (i) a pilot project to add ambassadors to city parks; and (ii) authorization to increase the total number of uniformed officers by up to four to address attrition and overall capacity.

“As confirmed by the Lakewood Police Department’s recent annual report, Lakewood is a safe community, and we want to be proactive in keeping it that way,” said Mayor George. “We can achieve that goal by using this limited portion of Lakewood’s ARPA dollars in creative and strategic investments like non-uniformed community safety via the ambassadors as well as addressing our capacity needs in the police department.”

A portion of the ARPA funds will allow the city to enter into a contract with the nonprofit Downtown Cleveland Alliance (DCA) to have their award-winning ambassador program staff city parks during warm weather months. The agreement with DCA will serve as a pilot program that adds safety services outside of traditional uniformed officers and helps achieve a holistic approach to public safety.

“Ambassador programs with elements of safety work have been implemented across the U.S. by cities, neighborhoods, and community groups, including at least a half dozen locally in Cuyahoga County,” explained Mayor George. “The model will use trained personnel to provide a stable, friendly presence in our parks, interacting in a positive way with the public while also helping to identify and report potential safety issues before they arise or escalate.” The Mayor noted that the ambassadors will wear easily identifiable gold uniforms and ride bicycles to traverse the parks and provide a visible presence.

In addition to the ambassadors, ARPA dollars will be used to increase the capacity of Lakewood’s uniformed police officers by up to four. This increase was necessary to address succession planning, keep staffing at key thresholds, and avoid any reduction in service as the Lakewood Police Department deals with known and expected attrition from retirements and industry-wide challenges with recruiting high caliber talent to policework. The additional officers are also expected to meaningfully reduce the use of overtime while also helping with morale and retention for current officers.

“We are facing a significant number of likely retirements near term, and overall recruiting and hiring pools have sharply decreased for police work,” said Police Chief Kevin Kaucheck. “Our department has high standards for officer training and onboarding, whether recruits or signees from other departments. It takes time for new officers to be able to patrol solo without a training partner, and all of this affects our ability to deploy our force. These ARPA funds and the ability to hire additional officers is appreciated and will be very helpful in keeping our departmental capacity at key levels.”

“The use of these funds for public safety is an intentional, caring and necessary way to provide for our residents’ peace of mind,” said Council President John Litten. “Lakewood City Council anticipates that this funding will provide for greater safety, but also for greater community engagement and a sense that all are welcome in our public spaces. I was happy to approve of this use along with my colleagues.”

For more information about the City of Lakewood, please visit lakewoodoh.gov.