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Warrenville police highlight community programs, staffing challenges and plans for shared social-worker services
Summary
Police Chief presented FY27 priorities including community engagement, training and a proposal to share social-work services with neighboring towns; the chief also described staffing impacts from leaves and the loss of Community Service Officer Josh Perry.
Warrenville's police chief told the council the department will continue community-oriented services and pursue several FY27 initiatives, including a shared social-worker model with neighboring jurisdictions and expanded building security cameras.
In remarks opening the department's presentation, the chief said the department aims to ensure residents “feel that level of trust and transparency,” and highlighted year-to-year work including training, recruitment and an operations assessment that will be presented at the next meeting.
The chief described recent staffing challenges: "We've had 2 officers that were deployed," he said, and noted extended FMLA leaves; he also said the department "lost our community service officer, Josh Perry," and announced plans for a community celebration of life. The chief credited Perry with leading many successful community events.
Programs and metrics: the chief said the department restarted DARE with 61 graduates, ran traffic-safety initiatives with IDOT, performed school lockdown drills and hosted events that drew an estimated 1,500 attendees. He reported 9,060 pounds of paper shredded, four pallets of electronics recycled and 928 pounds of prescription drugs collected and destroyed through the department's take-back program.
FY27 proposals: the chief said the department is exploring a shared social-worker arrangement (North East DuPage Family Services) with Winfield and possibly West Chicago to lower costs and increase on-scene social services; he also previewed a decision package to expand city building security cameras to additional locations. The department is pursuing ILEAP Tier 2 accreditation based on consultant recommendations and plans tabletop emergency exercises and continued succession planning.
Council members thanked the department for community engagement and asked for more publicity for the Citizens Police Academy, statistics on the ‘I Live Alone’ program (the chief said records could be provided upon request), and clarification on interjurisdictional drills with Fermilab (the chief said discussions had occurred but no formal joint training was in place).
Next steps: The operations-assessment presentation is scheduled for the next council meeting; decision packages for FY27, including the shared social-worker proposal and camera upgrades, will be brought forward in the budget process.
