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Residents urge participation in Safe Streets for All; organizers announce Pedalpalooza and other events
Summary
Speakers at public comment urged residents to submit safety data to the Safe Streets for All initiative, promoted Pedalpalooza and National Night Out, and criticized continued use of previous-administration initiatives and partnerships such as POGO and Shawnee Forward.
Kerry Peck, a volunteer with POGO’s built-environment committee, urged Shawnee residents to take part in a community data collection for the Safe Streets for All program and promoted a series of neighborhood events.
The call to participate came during the city commission’s public comment period, when Peck said the committee is collecting resident input through an online interactive map at safe-streets-shawnee.org and will analyze responses through the winter with a draft expected by February. “The data collection is really just focused on residents providing their input on how they feel where they feel safe and unsafe in our community,” Peck said.
Peck also invited residents to Pedalpalooza, a community bicycle event on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Boy Scout Park that includes a parade, activities and helmet giveaways, and urged volunteers to help. He said POGO is partnering with Community Renewal and other local groups. Peck also noted National Night Out on Oct. 7 and National Walk to School Day on Oct. 8.
Several other speakers used public comment to press the commission on the city’s policy direction. Cindy Berger said she was concerned the city continues to use programs and personnel associated with the prior administration — naming POGO, Community Renewal and Shawnee Forward — and urged staff and commissioners to “listen to its people” and focus on family-oriented attractions rather than what she described as drawing social services to the city. “I have a family. I want to do things, in Shawnee, with my family,” Berger said.
Teresa Cody expressed similar concerns and called for reinstating a traffic commission and having citizens take responsibility for reporting problems in their neighborhoods. Rob Morris raised a separate public-safety concern about workplace violence after describing an altercation he had observed, asking whether the city would take action if an employee physically assaulted a coworker.
Why it matters: The comments touch on two city priorities — pedestrian and traffic safety data collection under Safe Streets for All, and public sentiment about the city’s partnerships and priorities. Commissioners did not take action on the comments during the meeting; public comment is advisory under Oklahoma Statute 25 O.S. § 311(b)(1).
