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Chief says FIFA security will be grant‑funded; department outlines staffing and mutual aid plans
Summary
Chief John Schultz told council a grant agreement from the FIFA local organizing committee arrived the previous week and will fund security for visiting teams; the department expects extra-duty sign-ups and outside-agency assistance and said minimum staffing and 911 response will be maintained.
Chief John Schultz briefed the Committee of the Whole on public-safety planning for FIFA events and said the local organizing committee recently provided a grant agreement to reimburse city services. "Up until Wednesday, we hadn't received any correspondence ... Wednesday afternoon they the local organizing committee did send over their grant agreement for us," Schultz said.
Schultz said police will provide continuous exterior security at a team hotel while it is in residence, escort teams between hotel and practice facilities within city limits, and provide exterior security at practice venues. Commander Swain will serve as the operations commander and a staff member named Chandler will lead FIFA planning and operations.
The department expects roughly 500 individual extra‑duty sign‑ups to staff security across the city for FIFA events. Schultz said the grant will cover overtime for filling FIFA positions: "The grant is covering the overtime for filling all the FIFA positions." He added that overtime for unrelated department needs would not be covered by the grant and that mutual‑aid agencies will be used to ensure the city’s minimum patrol staffing and 911 response are not reduced.
Councilmembers asked which costs would use public funds; Schultz and the chair said all FIFA-specific services will be reimbursed through the grant and that two related resolutions (interlocal agreements) would be presented for council approval that evening. Council also asked about the department’s recruiting cadence; Schultz said four conditional offers are pending and about 10 officers are in training or field phases.
The committee did not vote on FIFA contracts during this briefing; the matter was expected to appear on that evening’s council agenda.
