Promoting public safety in the City and nurturing a sense of security in our neighborhoods, business districts and in schools continue to be the focus in many of our programs

Year in Review
New Emergency Plans, Training, Building Benefit Community
When disaster strikes, there is no substitute for good planning and community involvement.
To that end, the City completed and revised our Disaster Plan, trained many residents and put the finishing touches on a new base from which to coordinate the City’s response to disasters.
With our newly completed disaster plan tested during last year’s storms, valuable “real life” feedback from various City departments has served to enhance an already comprehensive plan. Further analyzing the City’s preparedness, a Care & Shelter Drill, involving the Fire and Recreation and Community Services departments, NERT (Neighborhood Emergency Response Teams) and Monterey-Salinas Transit, was conducted in June.
The drill provided an additional opportunity to evaluate and assess the needs of the City’s Community Centers to adequately serve as shelter facilities.
Since we believe resident involvement in emergency planning is critical, our Fire Department also conducted a pair of NERT courses. We now have a total of 242 NERT graduates prepared to help in time of disaster. Foundations for NERT storage facilities for our neighborhoods, approved through the NIP (Neighborhood Improvement Program), are now out to bid.
To unify and coordinate these various entities, we completed construction of our new Emergency Operations Center (EOC) in August. The EOC serves as the City’s emergency management headquarters during disasters.

Looking Ahead
Police Dogs, Volunteer Patrol Unit Aid Police Team Effort
At the suggestion of the public, police officers and police management, we have initiated a wide range of community oriented policing programs. The latest addition to our extensive public safety effort includes a pair of new programs.

• Two fully trained and certified German Shepherds will join the Monterey Police Department as another public safety tool. Truly a collaboration between the community and the City; local individuals, businesses and neighborhood associations have partnered with us to bring these new resources to our Police Department.
  “We thought it was important because we have seen what police dogs can do in other communities,” says Mary Ann Finocchi, vice president of the Monterey Police Citizens’ Academy Alumni Association, which spearheaded the fundraising effort for the Canine Unit. “The presence of a dog with an officer lowers the level of violence and can prevent violence from escalating.”
  Today’s modern police dogs can track criminals, find lost citizens as well as locate victims of natural disaster.
  They have proven to save lives, reduce injuries to officers and innocent citizens and curtail criminal activity. Police dogs are able to search large areas, such as trails, parks, large businesses and shopping centers for lost persons and/or suspects more quickly than police officers on foot. This will save the department and officers valuable time by allowing them to complete calls as quickly as possible. Additionally, the German Shepherds provide us greater opportunities to interact with our community members.
  Monterey Officer Mickey Roobash, a six-year MPD veteran, will head the Canine Unit. In his spare time he has been training dogs for police duty for three years, and he looks forward to getting the program up and running.
  “You really need community support to get a new program started,” says Roobash. “And I can’t tell you how much support we have received.” To date, more than $9,000 of private money has been raised to bring the trained police dogs to Monterey.
  
• The Monterey Volunteers in Policing (M.V.P.) Patrol Unit acts as an extra set of eyes and ears for the Police Department. Utilizing volunteers who travel on foot, bicycle or in a car throughout the downtown and waterfront areas, the unit is out in the community listening to your concerns and issues.
  The M.V.P.s allow staff to focus on other projects and provide services that weren’t offered before. That’s one of the reasons Ron Rountree joined the patrol unit.
  “Police officers are burdened with many duties which could be handled by responsible private citizens,” Mr. Rountree says.
  Additionally, the M.V.P.s, who wear an identifiable uniform and carry a radio, say they enjoy being out and about.
  “I love doing this. It has been a very positive experience. People have been very responsive,” says M.V.P. Arlea Sylvia.
  To date, nine people have joined the unit that also performs vacation house checks and assists with traffic and crowd control at special events.
  All M.V.P.s are 50 years old or older, have successfully cleared a background check and have completed the 12-week Citizens’ Police Academy course. Call 646.3819 for more details