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Buen Gobierno 

Protected by the Best and Represented by the Finest 

Prioridades políticas

La honestidad, la integridad y la transparencia en el Ayuntamiento comienzan desde arriba. Para garantizar un gobierno responsable y eficiente, nuestro compromiso con la Ciudad de Bridgeport debe ir más allá de la práctica de hace décadas de ajustes presupuestarios y cambios de personal, sino que debe incluir cambios estructurales que identifiquen brechas de oportunidad,elevar la dignidad del trabajo, ypromover el bienestar de nuestra comunidad. Para crear una supervisión reflexiva y lograr un gobierno en el que la gente pueda confiar, debemos terminar con la puerta giratoria del escándalo y la disfunción.

 

Las principales prioridades de la próxima administración deben sercultivar una cultura de eficiencia, proporcionarbuena gestión fiscal, y asegúrese de quela transparencia es de suma importancia en todas las decisiones de gestión.

Promoción de una cultura de eficiencia y transparencia

The Bridgeport Police Department (BPD) is currently experiencing a crisis which directly affects the public safety of our community. The department is understaffed by over 130 police officers, with the possibility of more retiring by the end of June. We are operating under a massive shortage and increasing exodus of our public safety personnel. To attract and retain talent we need to address this crisis with an administration that thinks creatively, prioritizes sustainable growth and most importantly, supports our public safety personnel and our community. The quicker this is addressed, the less of a burden this will be on the residents and the more impact we will have on our city’s morale and safety.

2.  Juntas y Comisiones equitativas

1.Wages and benefits, including maternity benefits, must be reviewed. 2.Prioritize recruitment initiatives through a dedicated personnel division. 3.Contract retired police officers to work 19-hours a week on special initiatives and non-emergency engagements to mitigate the temporary shortage of personnel including but not limited to: a. Supporting the traffic division to make our roads safe and focus on decreasing motor vehicle accidents and increasing both vehicle and pedestrian safety. b. Supporting the 911 dispatch center on strategic calls. c. Supporting overall recruitment and engagement within the community. 4.Optimize response time and maximize our resources by assessing current sector divisions throughout the city. 5.Reassess existing officer resources for our 38 schools district wide to continue to strengthen the relationship between students/teachers and the police. 6.Recommend a series of actions to bring forth police accountability through quarterly reviews, continued education, cultural sensitivity training and periodic check-in meetings with the Mayor’s Office. 7.Create a non-emergency portal for citizens to engage with personnel, making it easier for residents to report a specific grievance or observation. Revitalizing our public safety sector will have a direct positive impact on our community. Residents and business owners alike will be able to live and work in a community that maximizes our safety and security by increasing community policing, reducing response times and following up on systemic occurrences.

3.  Dotación de personal y cambios estructurales

Our administration is willing to sit at the table and not only be fair but take an active role when it comes to salary, benefits, equipment and services of our public safety personnel. As a community we will not take shortcuts with our lives and with our families. Currently, most of our public safety personnel are working under extenuating circumstances with depleted resources. For the City of Bridgeport to be competitive when compared to our peer and aspirant cities, we need to make sure that we are supporting our public safety personnel with an equitable contract.

Leverage our Facilities, Technology & Resources 

Nationally, we have seen improvements when it comes to the building of new facilities and the adaptation of new technologies into our public safety practices. However, we need to maximize the potential of these resources in our own community and foster an environment of best practices and growth. We need to synergize public safety purchases across the city such as facilities, vehicles, and auto parts. A coordinated effort amongst departments will maximize our purchasing power and reduce overall waste. To address the rising cost associated with improving our public safety resources, we need to align efforts with the priorities of the Department of Justice (DOJ) to take advantage of funded programs. In addition, we need to approach our training needs more strategically. A new training facility for the City of Bridgeport and all neighboring cities was proposed in 2017. This state-of-the-art facility can provide comprehensive curriculum training with real event scenarios to our force that will make the City of Bridgeport a leader in state public safety training.

Sólida Gestión Fiscal

We all benefit from the public safety operations within our city. Furthermore, we all have a stake in implementing best practices through community engagement and holding our departments accountable. Residents of Bridgeport need to feel included in the system and be able to provide a diverse voice to the allocations and improvements of the public safety sector.

  1. Llevar a cabo una auditoría forense

This starts with our youth. Our children deserve to grow up in a safe and healthy environment. Prioritizing youth programs and engaging with our schools about the impacts of public safety and potential career opportunities will be an important way to support both our children and their families.

2.  Administrar un presupuesto para reflejar nuestras metas

Our public safety structures must address the realities of crime and public health in our community, including gun violence, hate crimes, property thefts, the rise of motor vehicle accidents and drug use. Our departments need to coordinate a response by increasing the capacity of our medical, counseling, training and social support services to work directly with residents and established social service organizations to improve not only our safety, but our quality of life.

3. Examinar gastos versus ingresos

We will make sure that our public safety personnel are integrated into the community by reinforcing their presence and engagement. Community policing is when police officers are assigned to a regular beat and that is the beat that they work every day. This will allow members of the community to get to know the officers assigned to their neighborhood and build a rapport with the people who live there. This approach to policing gives officers a clear investment in the neighborhoods on their beat and allows them to work more effectively with the residents to better understand their needs. In addition, our administration will host monthly meetings to discuss public safety with the residents and small businesses. These meetings will be an opportunity for our community to come together and talk about our goals and achievements, overall areas for improvement and suggestions on how to respond effectively.

The Gomes administration will live in the City of Bridgeport and be invested in our public safety environment. We will experience firsthand what happens outside of the 9-5 workday and be empowered to engage as residents of Bridgeport. These priorities illustrated will have a direct impact with us, the residents of the City of Bridgeport. The more we optimize our resources the more we reduce and prevent crime and create a safe environment for public safety. Our public will be protected by the best and represented by the finest.

Demonstrated Strong Reputation for Support in Public Safety Projects:

The following are projects and initiatives that John Gomes led under his purview when working for the City of Bridgeport. These projects were initiated and implemented along with the Public Safety sector. 

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  • Radio Operability Project - $5MM

  • Electronic Ticketing Process

  • Mobile Data Terminal: computerized device used in emergency services to communicate with a central dispatcher. 

  • Nexgen: A record management system that allows quality assurance reports between the Police Department and the 911 Emergency Dispatch Center.  

  • Kronos: Implemented to reduce the City of Bridgeport’s policing overtime costs and maintaining accurate payroll information.  

  • Dispatch/EOC Policies and Procedures

  • Grants for Fusion Center Improvements

  • Security Infrastructure

  • New BPD Boat

  • Waterfront port security projects with EOC OT management 

  • 74 new cars with requested allocation for 10 new ones yearly

  • RTA: A fleet management software that manages parts, equipment and repair orders in an effective and timely manner. 

  • Proposed new regional 12,000 sq ft state of the art training facility with models for training academy and recruitment center. 

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