Cleveland City Council is considering spending about a million dollars on planning for a violence prevention program.
The proposal from Mayor Justin Bibb would use $850,000 from what’s left of the city’s American Rescue Plan Act allotment to develop a strategy for combatting violence citywide.
During a council meeting Friday, members were supportive of the idea of a violence strategy that goes beyond policing, but were skeptical about funding and using outsiders to develop the plan.
“The historical problem I see in Cleveland is that the people who call the shots in this city do not live here. They live outside of the city. They live in very nice cities where their kids go to good schools,” said Safety Committee Chairperson Mike Polensek, during a joint Safety and Workforce committees meeting Friday.
The mayor’s office invited experts who’ve worked on violence prevention programs in Milwaukee and Chicago and from the criminal justice reform advocacy organization the Vera Institute to present model programs to council.
The Office of Prevention, Intervention and Opportunity for Youth and Young Adults, run by Sonya Pryor-Jones, would oversee the strategy in Cleveland.
The work has already started. Last year, the city received a $2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Justice for the same planning process.
Chico Tillmon, who runs a violence prevention program in Chicago, told council the city should be prepared to make a much larger investment.
“Columbus invested $20 million. Oakland $20 million. Atlanta $75 million. St. Louis, which is smaller than this, $11.5 million,” Tillmon said.
Currently, the city has small investments in violence prevention.
Cleveland recently renewed a contract with the violence prevention group the Cleveland Peacemakers Alliance for $300,000. The mayor’s Community Relations Board also does some street outreach to prevent violence.
During budget hearings this year, council learned the city funds a total of six violence prevention workers.
“We need to invest in violence prevention in the annual budget much more than we are,” said Councilmember Stephanie Howse.
City officials have visited Milwaukee to learn about a program run by the Medical College of Wisconsin.
Director of Violence Prevention Policy and Engagement at the Medical College of Wisconsin Reggie Moore told council that planning would take 12 months.
And the focus would not just be on dropping murder and gun violence rates, but also increasing youth employment and improving neighborhoods.
“We are taking a whole of government approach to this,” said Pryor-Jones,
