The Bergen Record

Public safety is improving in Paterson

But there’s still more to be done

Crime has dropped significantly in Paterson for over a year. I certainly appreciate the daily and effective efforts of the men and women in our Police Department, but as I have said repeatedly, we cannot arrest all of our problems away.

We have improved public safety in Paterson by taking a compassion­ate and holistic approach. Our focus has been on prevention, interventi­on and empowermen­t.

For more than five years, we have prioritize­d providing our youth with safe places to play. Our $100 million investment has resulted in 10 new athletic fields, 10 improved parks, and multiple inclusive playground­s. Moreover, upon taking office in 2018, I immediatel­y increased our recreation budget.

We have applied for and been awarded $50 million in grant funding. One of those grants focuses on crime prevention through our community policing unit. The grant has been used to fund employment opportunit­ies for young men and women.

Two years ago, Paterson became the first and, to date, the only city in New Jersey to establish a Financial Empowermen­t Center. Through the aforementi­oned initiative, we have helped hundreds of Patersonia­ns improve their credit scores, reduce their debt and put participan­ts on a path to becoming first-time homeowners.

In 2022, we launched our guaranteed income program and provided 110 residents with $400 a month for the year. Recipients spent the money on groceries, rent and utility bills. One woman said she and her family had a real Thanksgivi­ng for the first time in their lives.

Late last year, we relaunched the guaranteed income program and scaled up to serve 200 residents. One recipient said that as a result of the financial assistance, she was able to buy Christmas gifts for all of her children.

We have also worked to reduce our rate of recidivism. Two years ago, Paterson became the first city in the state to have a reintegrat­ion services coordinato­r housed in the mayor’s office. Our reentry assistance program has helped clients obtain employment, receive identification documents, and secure housing support, food, and clothing.

Opioid use disorder is a long-standing challenge that many cities in the world face. In Paterson, we are serious about helping people defeat their demons and live a new life.

Since Sept. 13, 2021, our Opioid Response Team has performed proactive outreach and provided recovery operations in target areas primarily on Broadway. The team has hitherto conducted 4,426 interactio­ns with community members and made 578 referrals for treatment.

In 2021, we won a $1 million award from Bloomberg Philanthro­pies to combat drug addiction in Paterson. Our RealFix program, which was recently featured in this newspaper, is giving people the hope and the help that they need. In the past year, we have helped 213 clients receive treatment. Some 85 of those individual­s are homeless. Our objective is to ensure that all of our clients are clean and housed.

In addition to all of the aforementi­oned initiative­s, we plan to create a Community Court in Paterson. This initiative will place low-level, non-violent offenders on a path to a more productive life.

Public safety has always been my priority. The actions we have taken over the last five years have helped us reduce crime and improve lives. Our collective and comprehens­ive efforts are making Paterson a safer and a stronger city.

The actions we have taken over the last five years have helped us reduce crime and improve lives.