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downtown policing action plan team is a timely effort that supports the building momentum for revitalization of downtown and elevates public safety as a crucial component to the long-term success of a vibrant urban core. The continuing challenge for the commission will be allocating its time and resources to those critical and time-sensitive issues and declining involvement in projects that would detract from its effectiveness by spreading its membership and staff resources too thin. b. Procedural Objectives One of the key elements of the commission's success is the people who serve on the body. Since its inception, the group has maintained a highly qualified and dedicated membership that works extremely well together in support of the community. Last year, six members' terms expired, of which five re- applied and are serving their second term. Dr. Munir Katul, the commission's first chair, declined a second term but is continuing to work with the department in other capacities. Through the recruitment and selection process coordinated by the City Manager's Office, two new members joined the commission last Fall. Commissioner Bennett was selected to fill Position 1, formerly held by Dr. Katul, and Commissioner Olsen filled a vacancy due to the early resignation of Thomas Kutchai. The group remains committed to examining and modifying its internal processes to increase its effectiveness. Some procedural objectives highlighted last year were to: · Establish a successful working relationship between the commission and the new Chief of Police; · Implement a mentorship process for new commissioners; · Develop an evaluation plan to assess the effectiveness of the Police Commission, particularly as it relates to the impact of its policy recommendations on police practices; · Continue to improve community outreach and involvement of the public in the commission deliberations. Regarding the procedural objectives, commission leadership and the Chief's appointee, John Brown, have had several informal discussions with Chief Lehner for information sharing and relationship building purposes. These conversations have proven to be very valuable and will continue periodically over the next year. The fact that Chief Lehner places a high value on the public participation in police policy development and genuinely appreciates the work of the Police Commission has made for a smooth leadership transition. Two commissioners have served in mentorship roles to the new appointed members by acting as primary contacts for procedural questions and providing other support to help them quickly acclimate to the body. Commissioners Bennett and Olsen were also encouraged to participate on committees as another way to become more familiar and comfortable with Police Commission and public meetings processes. Commissioner Bennett is serving on the Racial Profiling Data Collection Task Team and Commissioner Olsen is Chair of the Downtown Policing Action Plan Team. Regarding the Police Commission's intent to develop an internal evalUation process, no formal assessment plan has been drafted. However, two new processes are in place that will begin to answer the commission's questions about how its policy recommendations impact police practices and whether procedural changes should be made to increase the commission's effectiveness. First, the commission has added annual policy implementation status updates to its work plan to help determine 2004 Annual Report Page 9 of 10