Racine officials present draft comprehensive safety plan and group-violence intervention; police report mixed crime trends

RACINE, Wis. — City staff on Thursday presented a draft 2025 Comprehensive Safety Plan and described a Group Violence Intervention (GBI) model the city is using to target a small number of people responsible for a large share of recent gun violence.

Director Derek Tate, community safety director, told the Public Safety Committee the plan grew out of the City of Racine Office of Violence Prevention and was shaped by community conversations and a state grant. "Our vision is ultimately that no matter who you are, where you live, where you come from, you have a right to be safe in this community," Tate said.

The plan and presentation laid out five priorities: stopping shootings and violence; creating safe, connected neighborhoods; promoting healthy social development (especially for youth); using infrastructure and environmental design to reduce risky behavior; and rebuilding trust between law enforcement and residents. Tate said the work draws on a public‑health approach — defining problems, identifying risk and protective factors, deploying interventions, and measuring outcomes.

Tate said the plan was funded by the State of Wisconsin Department of Administration’s Blueprint for Peace grant and informed by nearly 900 resident surveys and community conversations held June–October 2024. The draft is intended to guide city work for three to five years, with a formal…