Brooklyn Park Mayor Talks Public Safety at State of the City

Brooklyn Park Mayor Hollies Winston spent much of his May 11 State of the City address discussing issues related to public safety. 

He said many residents tell him the city feels less safe than in previous years. 

“They can’t always put their finger on it, but they don’t feel maybe that same sense of security, and the uncomfortable truth is, they’re right,” Winston said.  “Things do feel different, and we have to be aware that, Brooklyn Park, we are in the eye of a public safety storm and the young people in our city need our attention now more than ever before.”

To reduce crime, police need to partner with violence interrupters and other nonprofits, Winston said. 

Brooklyn Park Mayor Hollies Winston spent much of his State of the City address discussion issues related to public safety.

“I’m tired of hearing about crime going up because the economy is down, and then going down because the economy is up,” he said. “We need a model where over time consistently moving crime further and further down because we understand the underlying concepts.”

Gaps in the juvenile justice system allow at-risk youth to slip through the cracks, he said. 

Meanwhile, organizations such as The Village BP are working to prevent crime and connect people with resources and social services, Winston said.

The organization was founded by Huntington Place Apartments resident Tekoa Cochran. 

“If folks remember, during the pandemic and during the unrest after George Floyd, Huntington Place was in many ways going through a living hell,” Winston said. 

The Village BP hosted events at Huntington that opened lines of communication between the community and police department, Winston said. 

Those partnerships resulted in reductions to crime, he said. 

The full speech is available on the city’s Facebook.

Brooklyn Park