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city. It provides the most natural home for this division in the absence of a City-run Fire <br />Department. It will also improve coordination and communications between Ocean <br />Rescue and the Marine Patrol Officer, Beach Patrol Officers and other members of the <br />Police Department. <br /> <br />The Operations Division will be split with the formation of a new Special Operations <br />Division headed by the current Lieutenant of Operations. This new division will house <br />all special operations outside of the road patrol, including the Motors Unit, the Detective <br />Bureau, the Marine Patrol, the Ocean Rescue Division, the enlarged Special <br />Enforcement Unit (SEU) and the new Community Policing Unit. The existing Sergeant <br />of Investigations position will oversee both the Detective Bureau and the new Special <br />Enforcement Unit, while a new Sergeant of Special Operations position (internal <br />transfer) will oversee everything else. <br /> <br />The addition of one new position in the Motors unit (which restores it to its former <br />staffing levels) is being driven by the increased construction activity and the increased <br />traffic we will be experiencing as a result of both the construction itself and the <br />population/vehicle increases we will see after the construction. Motorcycles are <br />invaluable when there are bottlenecks and traffic jams, allowing officers to get to and <br />navigate places that patrol cars cannot. It also allows us to better enforce some <br />important traffic laws, including excessive speed, failure to yield, and failure to yield for <br />pedestrians. <br /> <br />Three factors are driving the creation of the new Community Policing unit and <br />expansion of the SEU; 1) cutbacks in critical units from neighboring law enforcement <br />agencies due to the economy, 2) noticeable increases in gang related crimes and <br />relocation of nationally recognized gang members to the South Florida area, and 3) an <br />uptick in the minor crimes activity of our own population as our demographics change <br />towards a more juvenile and young adult oriented population in our city. <br /> <br />The Community Policing unit will be comprised of four officers who will spend most of <br />their time on bicycles. Community policing, which the Chief considers as both a highly <br />effective and necessary type of policing for our community today, is a philosophy which <br />supports the systematic use of partnerships and problem-solving techniques to <br />proactively address the immediate conditions that give rise to public safety issues such <br />as crime, social disorder, and fear of crime. It is based on collaborative partnerships <br />between the police and individuals and organizations in the community to develop <br />solutions to problems and increase trust in police. The increase in trust results in better <br />cooperation and information sharing between the community and the police, which is <br />particularly hard to develop with some of our immigrant populations that could not trust <br />their home country police agencies. <br /> <br />The unit will have a day and night shift and will work on developing closer relationships <br />with community residents and business owners. It will also serve as our parks patrol <br />and special events security, and provide a better way for us to enforce bicycle safety in <br />the City. <br /> <br />5 <br />