Title
Donation from Phoenix Police Foundation for Victim Center Renovation (Ordinance S-48873)
Description
Request to authorize the City Manager, or his designee, to accept a donation from the Phoenix Police Foundation up to $550,000. Further request authorization for the City Treasurer to accept all funds, and for the City Controller to disburse all funds related to this item.
Report
Summary
The Phoenix Police Department’s Family Investigations Bureau (FIB) sees over 2,400 sexual and domestic violence victims every year, the most victims anywhere in the state, yet have one of the oldest facilities in the state. Victims of all races, gender, and age visit the facility, often within hours after encountering severe physical and mental trauma. The FIB also serves vulnerable victims in the LGBTQ+ community, homeless populations, and sex trafficking victims. Trauma-informed care practices have advanced over the years and highlight the need for a safe, comfortable environment for victims to recount the assault to officers and collect forensics related to these traumatic experiences. The FIB needs to continue to lead the state by facilitating an advocacy center that meets the unique and fragile needs of victims of domestic and sexual violence.
The standard practice changes made by the newer advocacy centers have not been incorporated into the Phoenix Family Advocacy Center. Currently, victims do not have a private location and must wait in a public waiting area with high foot traffic. This is not ideal as many victims are experiencing a traumatic event and are attempting to gain a sense of dignity and control of their lives which have just been turned upside down. Victims must also walk past the employee break room, offices, file rooms, and detective cubicles in order to reach the interview rooms. The Phoenix Police Foundation is raising funds to create a new Victims Center within the existing Family Investigations Bureau. This new space will provide a more welcoming environment, with warmer interview rooms and a pass-through entryway into the Forensic Nurse Examination (FNE) rooms, allowing victims to feel more safe and secure. The private rooms will also be the central area from which victims will be walked through the investigative process. The goal is to lead the state in how we serve, protect, and mend victims of sexual and domestic violence with our various partners at the Family Advocacy Center.
In conjunction with the creation of the Victim Center, the Family Investigations Bureau is seeking to reconfigure the workplace for supervisors and detectives. The relocation of the current interview rooms, along with outdated technology and monitoring rooms, will provide a space large enough to accommodate a medium size conference room. The current pandemic has demonstrated the need to have a conferencing room for various remote meetings and trainings. The space would create a room for patrol officers to brief detectives and supervisors on investigations requiring immediate follow -up. Currently, patrol officers brief detectives and supervisors on cases in the employee break room.
The Phoenix Police Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. The Foundation is committed to addressing unmet capital needs of the Phoenix Police Department, providing financial assistance in crisis situations, and recognizing those who protect our community.
Financial Impact
The creation of the Victims Center and workspace renovations have been anticipated to cost approximately $550,000. The Phoenix Police Foundation is raising funds pending approval of this donation by the City Council.
Location
2120 N. Central Ave.
Council District: 4
Department
Responsible Department
This item is submitted by Assistant City Manager Lori Bays and the Police Department.