1 AGENDA REPORT
TO: Public Safety Committee FROM: Community Policing
City Administrator Jestin Johnson Advisory Board (CPAB) Chief of Police Floyd Mitchell Chairperson Colleen Brown SUBJECT: 2024-2025 CPAB Annual Report DATE: October 30, 2025
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The objective of this report is to provide an overview of the effort, action, and activities conducted by the CPAB with the goal of strengthening community policing and improving community engagement in Oakland.
BACKGROUND / LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
In 1995, the City of Oakland established community policing as Oakland’s approach to public safety through Resolution 72727 CMS. This resolution institutionalized community policing through such strategies as creating Neighborhood Councils (NC), establishing the Community Policing Advisory Board (CPAB), and mandating that every police officer be trained in community policing. In 2005 the approach was updated with Resolution 79235 which further defined the role of each level within the community policing structure at the block, neighborhood, and city level as well as the partner roles of the Neighborhood Services Division (NSD) and Oakland Police Department (OPD). OPD assigned Community Resource Officers (CROs) to the 57 community policing beats. NSD assigned Neighborhood Service Coordinators (NSC) to Neighborhood Councils (NC) in every community policing beat. Police Service Technicians (PST) trained Neighborhood/Merchant Watch (NW/MW) groups and conducted CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design) inspections.
Over the years, staff was drastically reduced in the Neighborhood Services Division and OPD reduced the number of CROs citywide. These staff cuts impacted community policing and community engagement in Oakland especially Neighborhood Councils. The pandemic affected community participation in NC and CPAB meetings. The CPAB experienced difficulty meeting quorum due to vacancies. There were definitely some challenges which made it difficult to oversee NCs, conduct tri- annual recertifications and report to City Council.
NSD Vision: Every block is organized, and every neighbor is skilled, networked, and empowered to work together and in partnership with the City to solve problems and build a healthy, resilient community.
2 As a result, the board lost its visibility to the City Council and general public. Our goal is for this report to reaffirm our commitment to community engagement and revitalize our relationship with the City Council, CROs, the NCs, community partners and stakeholders.
KEY ISSUES AND IMPACTS
Community Policing and Engagement as Envisioned in Resolution 79235 - Community policing and engagement is a philosophy that empowers Oaklanders to work in partnership to improve their community and resolve concerns. - Resolution 72727/79235 formalized Community Policing in Oakland. - Neighborhood Councils are citywide & serve as an opportunity for Oaklanders to meet and work together to identify, prioritize, and resolve neighborhood concerns. ** Please note: the NSC position was eliminated due to the budget deficit in April 2025. **
3 Block-Level Organization
Neighborhood Watch (NW) and Merchant Watch (MW) is a partnership between neighbors to organize on a block level. Oakland Police Department staff previously provided training to organize over 800 official Neighborhood Watch and Merchant Watch groups citywide. There is a Block Captain representing every NW/MW group. The Neighborhood Watch Steering Committee provides oversight over the Neighborhood/Merchant Watch program.
Neighborhood-Level Organization
Neighborhood Councils (NCs) are the neighborhood-level component of the City’s Community Policing Program. NCs are organized by community policing beats and strive to include representatives from a variety of organizations as well as interested members of the community. There are currently forty-six (46) organized NCs citywide. Community Resource Officers (CROs) and Neighborhood Services Coordinators (NSCs) were previously assigned to every NC. The Neighborhood Services Coordinator position was eliminated due to the budget deficit. The number of Community Resource Officers assigned to NCs has reduced to eight (8) CROs citywide to cover forty-six (46) NCs.
Citywide Organization
The Community Policing Advisory Board (CPAB) advocates for community engagement and helps bring neighborhoods together as a community and citywide voice. • Advise OPD on implementing policy, operational or organizational changes that will affect community engagement and the functioning and operation of community policing as described in Resolution 79235.
• Certify and recertify Neighborhood Councils tri-annually or every three years. • Co-sponsor annual citywide Community Policing (Safety) Summit with the City Council, Police Department, and Neighborhood Watch Steering Committee (NWSC).
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
In 2024-2025, the CPAB worked to reorganize itself in order to fulfill its responsibilities to itself, the City Council, the Police Department, and most importantly to the Neighborhood Councils. In an effort to return to our core mission as described above, we have completed the following activities:
CPAB Retreat
Held a strategic planning retreat to train board members, establish and select 2025 goals.
Engagement plan
Created a plan for CPAB members to observe NC meetings and interact with the NC Chairpersons.
Area leadership meetings
Made a recommendation to city staff to reestablish the leadership meetings with OPD police captain by area with neighborhood council chairs.
Workplans
Developed workplans to outline action items and deadlines to achieve goals and assigned work to subcommittees within the CPAB which are meeting at least monthly.
Committees
Reestablished committees to work on accomplishing the action items and goals in the workplan.
4 Outreach material
Developed and published a brochure to educate the public on the CPAB responsibilities and duties.
Bylaw revision
Revised the bylaws to better align with other City boards, commissions, and the City Charter.
The revisions included recommendations to address requirements for meeting quorum in order to conduct business.
NC Tri-annual Recertification
The CPAB has begun the recertification process for all NCs to affirm compliance with the guidelines established in City Council Resolution 79235. Documentation was updated and sent to NC Chairs.
Training
Hosted a free conflict resolution training webinar presented by Oakland Speaks.
Request for Additional Staff
Letter submitted to the Mayor, City Administrator, and City Council advocating for additional Neighborhood Services Coordinator positions.
NOTABLE SETBACKS
The City recently eliminated many of the core elements necessary for effective community policing:
1. Elimination of the Neighborhood Services Division (NSD) Due to the budget deficit, the city recently eliminated the Neighborhood Services Division which included eight (8) positions: 4 NSCs, 2 supervisors, and 2 PSTs. With the exception of the area team leads in the City Administrator’s Office, there are zero employees to interface with the community which includes 46 NCs, and over 800 Neighborhood Watch groups. Without Neighborhood Services Division staff, there is no longer anyone to help coordinate between the city and NCs, send out notices, train, and support Neighborhood Watch groups. Many NC need support to continue having meetings for their community partners that include, but are not limited to residents, youth, seniors, faith community, merchants, non-profits, educational institutions (public/private/charter), community-based organizations, etc. There are different challenges, skill sets, language barriers, and resources in different areas of the city, especially in disadvantaged communities of color. It creates inequitable practices in underserved communities. For some NCs, the NSCs maintained records and by dissolving NSD, these records are now lost or difficult to retrieve.
As we have begun the process of recertifying the NCs, we have asked what their biggest organizational challenge is they are facing and if they are facing any major setbacks or disappointments. So far, ALL NCs which have responded have said elimination of the NSD has had the biggest impact.
The NSD staff were force multipliers and catalysts which helped build, maintain, and unify the community.
5 2. Loss of Communication and Transparency between Neighborhood Councils, Police Department, and other City Agencies.
One of the main functions of the NSCs within the NSD was to coordinate between City agencies and the NC. Without this interface, communication is severely impacted. NCs no longer have a conduit to relay information back and forth and no city staff to advocate for resources. Without anyone associated with the city, Neighborhood Councils no longer have any authority or legitimacy.
3. Elimination of Neighborhood Council (NC) Funds
The city previously allocated funds for each NC every fiscal year. The budget of $50,000 per year was recently eliminated due to the budget deficit. The funds supported NC activities such as outreach material, meeting room rental fee, Zoom accounts for virtual meetings, supplies, equipment, website fees, duplication, meeting refreshments, events i.e., neighborhood clean-ups, NNO, etc. along with other miscellaneous expenses.
4. Support and Training for NC and NWSC Leadership
NSD staff often assisted NC and NWSC leaders with administrative tasks, set up and provided access to ZOOM. This allowed NCs and the NWSC leaders to meet virtually and maintain accurate records. While the City Administrator’s Office continues to loan out video conferencing equipment, when NSD staff loaned equipment such as the OWL (video conferencing equipment) which permitted hybrid in-person/virtual meetings more technical support could be provided to groups that needed it. NC and NW leaders need support with administrative tasks, securing meeting locations, receiving response and accurate information from City staff.
5. Reduction of the number of CROs
Over the years, OPD reduced the number of CROs from fifty-seven (57) one for each community policing beat to eight (8) citywide. This has severely impacted OPD’s working relationship with the community. Neighborhood Council leaders report challenges with CROs assigned to oversee too many beats and often being reassigned to non CRO duties. This impacts the successful resolution of Neighborhood Council priorities and community concerns
6. Board vacancies
City Council Resolution 79235 states the Community Policing Advisory Board consists of fifteen (15) members. There are consistent vacancies on the board. As of September 2025, there are five (5) vacancies, which include three (2) Mayoral representatives, one (1) Oakland Housing Authority representative, and one (1) Council District 4 representative.
RECOMMENDATIONS
The Community Policing Advisory Board (CPAB) would like to make the following recommendations.
1. Strengthen the principles of Resolution 79235 & OPD Department General Order:
Community Policing
Oakland residents have clearly expressed their desire for community policing. The city council adopted community policing as city policy in Resolution 72727 in 1996. They elected a council that reconfirmed that policy in Resolution 79235 in 2005. And they voted to tax themselves by passing
6 Measure Y in 2004, Measure Z in 2014, and Measure NN in 2024, not to increase the number of patrol officers, but to increase the number of community-focused policing officers.
We ask that the City Council and OPD strengthen their commitment to community policing and assure the citizens of Oakland that it does not view routine assignments to patrol as a legitimate CRO activity, and they will support community policing
2. Partnership with Oakland Public Safety Planning and Oversight Commission (OPSPOC) CPAB recommends a partnership with the OPSPOC to identify and develop opportunities for community education and engagement. Assure Measure NN funds are allocated annually to support community engagement and community policing. It is vital that when they are developing the four- year public safety plan that community policing is integrated into the overall strategy We recommend CPAB and OPSPOC create a partnership to assure funds are allocated to support community policing and community engagement. We also recommend being included in the planning that affects community policing and community engagement related to direct services, programs, and strategies.
3. Assign Staff to Support Neighborhood Councils (NCs) and Neighborhood/Merchant Watch Neighborhood Council and Neighborhood Watch are central to community policing. Eliminating the NSD department and associated personnel (NSCs and PSTs) means that the public and neighborhood councils no longer have support or limited assistance from City staff. The Neighborhood Watch Program, Merchant Watch and Neighborhood Councils are force-multipliers to develop community leaders, organize community block groups and support NCs.
We recommend hiring staff to be assigned to support Neighborhood Council leadership, Neighborhood and Merchant Watch Block Captains, and the Neighborhood Watch Steering Committee.
4. Restore Funding for Neighborhood Councils
CPAB recommends that City Council reinstate Neighborhood Council funds, $50,000 each fiscal year for certified Neighborhood Councils. We also recommend staff is assigned for administrative support to preapprove and process required documentation for the Controller’s Office.
5. OPD Assign Community Resource Officers (CROs) to Support Every Neighborhood Council (NC)
CPAB recommends CROs are assigned to support every Neighborhood Council. Assign enough CROs to every community policing beat to address NC priorities and community concerns. Limit CROs being reassigned to non-CRO duties.
6. Reestablish and Co-sponsor the Citywide Community Policing (Safety) Summit CPAB recommends funds are dedicated and staff is assigned to work with the Police Department, City Council, and the Neighborhood Watch Steering Committee to plan a summit.
7 7. Expedite appointments to fill the vacant board member positions CPAB recommends the expedited selection and appointment of dedicated Oakland residents to fill the vacant board positions.
FISCAL IMPACT
The CPAB request the City Council allocate funds for dedicated staff, Neighborhood Councils operations, and citywide safety summit.
1. Request for Funding
a. Staff
Hire and/or assign staff to provide full-time support to Neighborhood Councils, Neighborhood Watch Steering Committee, and Neighborhood/Merchant Watch Block Captains. Currently, there are no staff assigned to support NW/MW, NCs, and the NWSC.
Budget request: $85,000.00 per position for Police Service Technician II. b. Neighborhood Council Funds
Reinstate funds to support Neighborhood Councils operations and activities i.e., meetings.
Budget request: $50,000.00
c. Citywide Safety Summit
Assign staff and allocate funds to work with the Police Department, City Council, CPAB, and Neighborhood Watch Steering Committee to plan a summit.
Budget request: $50,000.00
PUBLIC OUTREACH/INTEREST
A summary of this report was published and discussed at the CPAB’s regular September 3, 2025 meeting. The summary was also distributed by email to the CPAB email distribution list via the September 2025 agenda packet.
ACTION REQUESTED OF THE CITY COUNCIL
1. The CPAB requests funds are allocated to hire staff to support NC, NWSC, and train NW/MW.
2. Assign CROs to every beat and attend NC meetings.
3. Reinstate Neighborhood Council Funds, $50,000, to support NC operations, meeting space fee, events, outreach, and engagement activities.
4. Request that OPSOC (Measure NN) work together with the CPAB to help develop the four-year safety plan as it relates to the community policing aspect of their public safety plan.
5. Require an annual meeting with OPSOC (Measure NN Board), Police Commission and CPAB that includes an opportunity for each board/commission to give a presentation.
6. Assign staff and allocate funds, $50,000, for a Citywide Safety Summit.
8 For questions regarding this report, please contact CPAB Chairperson Colleen Brown by email at [email protected].
ATTACHMENTS:
Brochure – Attachment A
Work Plan – Attachments B
Link to Resolution 79235
https://www.oaklandca.gov/files/assets/city/v/1/boards-amp-commissions/documents/cpab/79235- cms.pdf