A Message from Mayor Coffman - Aug. 7, 2020
City Council Affirms Selection of Vanessa Wilson as Chief of Police
At our regular council meeting this week, I was honored to make the motion to affirm the city manager’s selection of Vanessa Wilson as Aurora’s Chief of Police. The City Council voted 10-1 in support, and she will be sworn in as chief at a future council meeting. I believe that she is the right choice to lead the Aurora Police Department. In her time as the Interim Chief, she has demonstrated leadership through the tough decisions she has made and strong actions she has already taken. She will have a lot of work to do to improve the image of this department and to rebuild trust between our officers and the community. I have every confidence this will be her top priority.
Wilson’s selection comes following an extensive national search and interview process that included residents, employees, members of the Community Police Task Force, business leaders, the immigrant and refugee community, advocates for change and racial equality, and the Aurora City Council. The four finalists were all excellent candidates, and we are fortunate to have had them all interested in serving Aurora.
Wilson will be the department’s first female police chief. In 2015 she was the first female to attain the rank of Division Chief in the department and was the first female to serve in the position of Aurora Interim Police Chief. During her career, Wilson has served as Metro Division Chief with oversight of the Investigations Bureau and Special Operations Bureau, Patrol Operations Division Chief, Acting Commander of District 2 Patrol Operations, Executive Officer of the Investigations Bureau, Internal Affairs Commander, Lieutenant of Recruitment and Field Training and various other assignments.
Please join me in congratulating Vanessa Wilson.
We Want to Hear From You About the City’s Restricted Breed Ordinance
The Aurora City Council will host a special meeting at 6:15 p.m. Monday, Aug. 10, to receive public input on the city’s Restricted Breed Ordinance, Section 14-75 of the Aurora Municipal Code. The City Council is considering whether to retain or repeal the ordinance, and whether a repeal should occur via City Council ordinance or public vote. We want to make sure you have a say in it.
Given COVID-19 limitations for public gatherings, the meeting will take place virtually, with the public invited to participate by providing live comments via telephone during the Aug. 10 meeting. To provide live comments during the City Council meeting via telephone, you must be in the call queue no later than 6:15 p.m. The number to call for the meeting (855.695.3475, then press *3 to reach operator) will be open for 30 minutes prior to the meeting, from 5:45 to 6:15 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 10, for people to be placed in the queue for the meeting. All callers in the queue entered by 6:15 p.m. will have up to 2 minutes to share their opinion. Once the meeting starts at 6:15 p.m., no additional callers will be allowed into the queue.
To learn more about the ordinance, including background and the June 18 virtual Town Hall meeting, visit AuroraGov.org/AnimalOrdinance.
Rental Assistance Program Reopening for Second Round of Applications
As part of the city’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic impact on residents, we took applications earlier this summer from residents who were financially affected by COVID-19, such as experiencing a job loss, to help them with their rental payments. I’m happy to announce that we are reopening the program to new applications starting Monday, Aug. 10, with the help of county CARES Act funding.
If you have experienced financial hardship due to COVID-19, you can apply for up to two months of rental payments through the program. Payments are made directly to the landlord or property manager, and you must provide documentation of your financial hardship. Applicants must have household income at 100% or less of the area median income. The application window is subject to closure when the number of applications exceeds the available funding, so I encourage eligible households to apply quickly once the window opens.
Qualification guidelines and further information is available at AuroraGov.org/RentAssist.
Responding to Last Weekend’s Police Stop
I have spoken with Police Chief Vanessa Wilson about an unfortunate incident last weekend in which a family was stopped by Aurora Police after an erroneous report of a stolen vehicle, including several members of the family being handcuffed. We both believe this was improper and traumatizing to the children involved. What happened is being thoroughly investigated, and I will continue to follow up to make sure changes in training and procedures take place. I am sorry for the pain, fear and confusion this family unnecessarily faced.
Face Covering Mandate Continues
We in Aurora continue to be under the recent executive order from Gov. Jared Polis and public health order from Tri-County Health Department that require people ages 11 and older to wear a covering over their noses and mouths in public indoor spaces and in other situations, depending on the order. Residents who have concerns about the mandate not being followed may reach out to Tri-County Health Department’s call center at 303.220.9200. Concerns about business non-compliance may be sent to businesslic@auroragov.org or 303.739.7057.
Mobile Food Pantry Continues
The Aurora Mobile Food Pantry, in partnership with Aurora Interfaith Community Services, continues to serve our community each week. In August, the mobile pantry is at Town Center at Aurora, 14200 E. Alameda Ave., every Wednesday, starting at 10 a.m., ending when food runs out. About 50 volunteers support the food pantry each week, and we still need help for the August dates. More information is available at AuroraGov.org/MobileFoodPantry
Aurora News
City Updates on COVID-19
Stay connected with the city during this pandemic about local efforts, city response and other updates. Visit AuroraGov.org/COVID-19 and on social media (Facebook, Twitter and Instagram) at @AuroraGov. You can also follow me on Twitter and Facebook at @AuroraMayorMike.