Police take community interaction to the Web
By Caitlyn Kelleher Journal Reporter

The police department is working on a new way to reach out to the residents to get information to improve their services.

Police Chief Erving Marshall Jr. has added an interactive and ongoing survey to the department's Web site. It is a mix of short answer and multiple choice questions.

Marshall stresses the information "will not be ignored and will be acted upon as time and available services allow."

"I just thought it would be interesting to see what people thought about us," Marshall said. "I'm always looking for input. They are the ones paying for the police department."

The site will be monitored by one of the dispatchers, Nims Collins, who also serves as the department's Webmaster.

The questions range from the current actions of the police department - such as do resident think the emergency response time is fast enough - to value questions - such as where do residents want the department's energy focused and what are the most important activities an officer does.

There are also questions about the future of the department with questions such as what are the major issues facing the department now, in the next one to three years and in the next three to five years.

The survey is located at www.townsendpd.org/ Feedback.htm.

The department has also updated the Web site to include e-mails for all of the police officers and communication department personnel.