ST PAUL, Minn. — It's not every day a business group wades into the choppy political waters of a public safety debate. That's why it's noteworthy the St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce is pressing city leaders to expand the police force.
"We shouldn’t back away from the set of our shoulders, which is continued investment in our police department," B Kyle, the CEO and president of the chamber, told KARE.
"The importance of an engaged police force speaks to actual safety as well as the perceived safety of the community -- sometimes it’s the same thing, and sometimes it’s not. But in either case it’s an experience of our city and we can’t afford to negatively impact at a very exciting time for us in Saint Paul."
Kyle pointed out Saint Paul's population is growing, and the city is working on major projects such as the Ford site redevelopment that will bring more jobs and new residents.
She noted that police departments calls for service are also on the rise, in addition to the spike in gun violence that has rocked the Capitol City in 2019. Those fatal shootings have been responsible for 90 percent of the city's record 29 homicides this year.
She said the business community supports Mayor Melvin Carter's public safety plan to address the causes of violence over the longer term. But the chamber is also concerned about what people are living through right now.
"We support the mayor's thinking -- he's saying what we’ve done for 100 years has got us here, we need some new thinking to get us to a different place tomorrow. That’s every exciting," Kyle remarked.
"And we're very concerned about the experience today, and how can he and the police chief together think about how we can do things differently today."
Mayor Carter wasn't available Tuesday, but issued this statement through his office:
"B Kyle is a strong leader who is constantly engaged on critical issues. I highly value our candid conversations, especially in areas where we may disagree."
Authorized strength
The first disagreement that surfaced between St. Paul Police Chief Todd Axtell and Mayor Carter was about total authorized strength. That number is at 635 in 2019. The mayor has proposed dropping that ceiling to 630 officers.
The mayor has said the city is still on track to have to more officers than ever before because the department's currently well below that 635 cap.
According to the SPPD, there are roughly 600 sworn officers. There are 40 more in the police academy pipeline who'd be eligible to come aboard in the spring of 2020 depending on funding.
But Kyle says it's not just about the numbers, but about the city's commitment to protect the quality of life and the ongoing investment being made to grow St. Paul.
"Current business owners call me about the need for private security at 6 a.m. all the way through to closing, not only because of perceived, but experienced, safety issues on their properties, on the light rail."
She said the chamber's economic development and business recruitment can be affected by both actual dangers people encounter as well as the city's media image.
"If I’m taking that prospect from downtown over to United Village and then on to the University of Minnesota, and I experience what I have experienced on the light rail that tells a story to that prospect about what we value in our community."
The St. Paul Area Chamber has more than 1,200 companies and non-profit organizations as members.