News Article

Archived News Release: December 21, 2022 - ​In April 2021, Ann Arbor City Council adopted resolution R-21-129 directing the city administrator to implement an unarmed crisis response program in the city of Ann Arbor (http://a2gov.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=4874520&GUID=84A3D90E-7AF3-46C9-98B8-FE4789A7DAB1&Options=ID%7cText%7c&Search=R-21-129). The City of Ann Arbor hired Public Sector Consultants (PSC), a Lansing-based research and policy consulting firm, to gather feedback from community members about the best way to create a team of unarmed social and human services professionals to respond to crisis and public safety calls in the city. PSC has facilitated several community engagement activities including interviews with community leaders, a public survey and discussion groups with business leaders, social service providers and community members.

The city invites all community members to join the conversation at one of the public forums in January.

• Monday, Jan. 9, at 1 p.m. — In person at the downtown Ann Arbor District Library, 343 S. Fifth Ave., basement multipurpose room.

• Thursday, Jan. 12, at 6 p.m. — In person at the Pittsfield Ann Arbor District Library Branch, 2359 Oak Valley Drive, program room.

• Thursday, Jan. 19, at 6 p.m. — *Online via Zoom https://pscinc.co/discuss, Meeting ID: 859 4501 3079, Passcode: 090446

These public forums will be an opportunity to hear the key themes from engagement activities, including highlights from the discussion groups and the survey results. Following a brief presentation, the forum participants will be asked to weigh in on their suggestions for how the team should be developed, what services it should provide and any other recommendations or concerns that participants want noted. 

The results of community engagement will inform the final recommendation to City Council for the formation and structure of the program. 

Questions regarding the listening sessions can be directed to project consultant Katie Van Dorn at [email protected].

For project updates and to discover additional opportunities to engage with the project team, visit https://www.a2gov.org/departments/city-administrator/Pages/Unarmed-Crisis-Response-Program.aspx.  

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