What do you want from the city’s next police chief? That’s the
question a recruiter will put to Gilroy residents Tuesday night, at
an open forum held from 7 to 8pm at the new police station on Hanna
Street.
Gilroy – What do you want from the city’s next police chief?
That’s the question a recruiter will put to Gilroy residents Tuesday night, at an open forum held from 7 to 8pm at the new police station on Hanna Street.
“We haven’t done anything like this before,” said Human Resources Director LeeAnn McPhillips. “But the police department really touches the community in the work they do, so we wanted to give the community an open invitation to share their thoughts and ideas.”
The answers residents give will help shape the profile of Gilroy’s next top cop – the ideal qualities that executive recruiter Gary Brown will seek in would-be chiefs. Brown, a former Monterey police chief, is the city’s key contact with Los Gatos-based search firm William Avery and Associates, hired by Gilroy at a $14,200 price.
He’ll be meeting with a slew of local groups, from the police union to downtown developers to the current chief, Gregg Giusiana, before sitting down with community members Tuesday night.
The process parallels that used to pick the school district’s new superintendent, Deborah Flores, which included two meetings, one for English-speaking parents, one for Spanish-speakers. Tuesday’s meeting will have Spanish translation, McPhillips said.
Open forums are a growing trend in police chief recruitment, said Fremont Police Chief Craig Steckler, former president of the California Police Chiefs Association.
“It varies from city to city, depending on the philosophy of the city manager and how open he or she is to making the process open,” said Steckler. “The police chief is generally the highest-profile position in the community. A lot of people will know who the police chief is, but not know who the city manager is.”
The Gilroy job has sparked excitement among upper-level officials in the San Jose Police Department and the Sheriff’s Office, according to a source close to the process.
The small city isn’t as hectic as major cities such as Oakland, but provides plenty of challenges for police to take on, explained Steve Smith, head of the Administration of Justice department at Gavilan College.
In-house candidates could include Captains Scot Smithee and Debbie Moore; the department’s third captain, Kurt Svardal, was only recently promoted to the rank.
McPhillips emphasized that the Tuesday forum will help Brown hone in on a distinctively Gilroy chief.
“Anything that’s unique to Gilroy is important,” she said. “That’s what we’ll put in the job brochure that goes out for this recruitment.”
