Close to 10 community members spoke to the Columbia City Council regarding race issues and community policing within the Columbia Police Department at Monday night’s council meeting.
Columbia resident Renee Maxwell said during the public comment period that Sgt. Robert Fox does not seem interested in community policing.
“I can tell you there is a general consensus among attendees that Sgt. Fox seems disinterested towards this initiative,” Maxwell said. “He doesn’t even pretend to have an interest in other models of community policing. He seems to have a single objective to convince people that community policing is not possible unless we give the police more money.”
She said she doesn’t blame Fox for this attitude. She blames City Manager Mike Matthes for the tone he has set. She also said city leadership is important for community policing to succeed.
“There is no model of community policing that can succeed unless it is founded on trust,” Maxwell said. “And I do not trust our city leadership to hold our police accountable for racial profiling.”
Matthes said at the meeting that Columbia has been working on this issue for years. Matthes said the bias-free policing policy was updated in January of this year. He expects to see results for upcoming years.
“We are continuing to work on this issue,” Matthes said. “Is there a bias? Of course there is. I believe, and I think most people do that every human being has a bias. That’s why we have this policy, bias-free policing. I believe we are doing more than any city in Missouri to address this issue.”
Agenda items
The council also voted to approve its 2018 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME Action Plan. For fiscal year 2018, the city was allocated $924,326 for CDBG and $651,319 for HOME by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which administers both programs.
The council also set in motion the construction of a roundabout at the intersection of Forum Boulevard and Green Meadows Road. This project, which generated opposition from some local residents, is expected to cost $1.17 million. The intersection is now a four-way stop, and other options included a full traffic signal, reduced traffic signal, J-turn and a j-turn with a pedestrian crossing.
Country Club Villas and clients of Green Meadows preschool were opposed to the roundabout at the public hearing in September. The council approved several steps on the consent agenda related to the project, including authorizing the city to seek bids for construction of the roundabout.
Thanks to the rising price of steel, an art project awarded for the city’s planned field house will net a Columbia artist $15,000 more than he expected.
Since 1997, the city has set aside 1 percent of any above-ground capital improvement project to be spent on public art for that project. The city chose artist David Spear and commissioned him to create public art for a total of $31,450.
But the cost of materials for the project has risen sharply, and the total cost of the project is now $50,310. As a result, the city must pay Spear $11,314 more. The council approved an amendment to Spear’s contract, which was included on the consent agenda.
Supervising editor is Tynan Stewart
