Title
Authorizing the City’s Office of Neighborhood Safety to apply for $50,000 grant funding from the Saint Paul and Minnesota Foundation to support its Project PEACE and St. Paul Public Schools Summer Schools Initiative.
Body
WHEREAS, Chapter 10 of the Saint Paul City Charter recognizes the City Council’s authority over the budget and spending of the City of Saint Paul; and
WHEREAS, Chapter 86 of the Saint Paul Administrative Code requires all contracts be authorized by the Saint Paul City Council; and
WHEREAS, Section 86.12 of the Saint Paul Administrative Code requires City Council approval prior to submission of grant applications; and
WHEREAS, the City of Saint Paul has established the Office of Neighborhood Safety (ONS) within the Office of the City Attorney (Ord 22-9); and
WHEREAS, ONS is a community-justice, equity, and safety-focused office that leads Project PEACE, a City of St. Paul initiative focused on deterring gun violence in the community through prevention, environmental design, accountability, community action, and enforcement; and
WHEREAS, ONS is aware that St. Paul Public Schools (SPPS) will merge all St. Paul Public Schools summer school programs to three buildings for six weeks during the summer 2023 school term for intensive credit recovery and learning; and
WHEREAS, ONS anticipates that merging the SPPS summer school programs will increase the risk of violence among summer school students, especially those affiliated with rival groups; and
WHEREAS, ONS has partnered with St. Paul Public Schools (SPPS) and created the Project PEACE and SPPS Summer School Initiative that will provide community-first lead strategic engagement at SPPS summer schools and nearby violent hotspots with the aim of reducing youth violence; and
WHEREAS, The Project PEACE and SPPS Summer School Initiative needs funding to hire a team of workers to support the initiative, specifically a Violence Interrupter, a School Support Liaison, and Comm...
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