About six dozen people were in attendance at a public safety forum held Wednesday in the city. P-J photo by Eric Tichy

A host of public safety concerns ongoing in the city, and the steps being taken to address them, were brought up during a nearly two-hour forum Wednesday evening.

About six dozen people were in attendance at Christ First United Methodist Church on Lakeview Avenue. The forum was organized by City Council President Tony Dolce, Ward II, and included comments on a range of public safety and housing issues from Mayor Eddie Sundquist; Crystal Surdyk, city director of development; Police Chief Timothy Jackson; Capt. Scott Forster; Steven Cobb, executive director of the Mental Health Association; and Chautauqua County Sheriff James Quattrone, among others.

Dolce had sought to host a forum for some time; plans to have city officials and the community in one location to address public safety were then quickly organized shortly after a man was shot and killed and another man was injured on Prendergast Avenue in August and had followed a rash of gun violence in the city.

Sundquist thanked those who attended the forum. He said the public can help city officials “better understand what’s going on in your neighborhoods, on your streets.”

He added, “You all live where the action’s happening. You all know what’s going on in the areas you are at, and we want to rely on your feedback tonight.”

Jamestown Police Chief Timothy Jackson, left, and City Council President Tony Dolce are pictured during a public safety forum. P-J photo by Eric Tichy

Among the many topics discussed Wednesday: efforts geared toward neighborhood stabilization and the programs and tools available to address housing; the importance of partnerships between city departments and with outside organizations and the community; a recent spike in homelessness; an uptick in confirmed shootings; and the correlation between drug use and trafficking and recent gun violence.

Surdyk noted that the city is facing a “monumental task,” with code enforcement and housing at the top of their list. “It takes up a lot of our time and energy,” she said. “Every day, all day long we’re on call 24/7.”

One of the keys to neighborhood stabilization, Surdyk said, is code enforcement. There are currently three code enforcement officers, and the department is always on call should someone be contacted by police or the fire department for assistance.

In the last couple of years, Surdyk said the city has condemned “a lot of properties,” though it’s a task that’s not undertaken lightly or the goal of the Department of Development.

“It’s not something that we ever really want to do,” she said, “because most of the time when that happens we are potentially displacing somebody.”

When it comes to demolishing a condemned property, it costs the city between $20,000 to $30,000 for each demolition. Sundquist said the city annually allocates up to $200,000 just for demolitions.

GUN VIOLENCE

Jackson said the most important issue facing the police department and community is gun violence. “And, of course, with gun violence comes narcotics,” he said. “Those are, by far, our most important issues facing law enforcement in the city of Jamestown.”

Through Aug. 14 of this year, Jackson said there have been 16 confirmed shootings in the city compared to 19 all of last year. He said cases involving reports of firearms have increased 4.2% so far this year over 2021 statistics, as well as a 76.2% increase compared to the five-year average of about 28 cases.

The police chief said shootings are occurring all over the city. “It’s not easy to combat this,” Jackson said. “It’s very difficult to figure out where the next shooting is going to occur. So, they’re scattered all over the city.”

Jackson noted that, when it comes to non-fatal shootings, either an arrest has been made or a warrant has been sought for an arrest. On their investigative said, he said JPD is “doing very well” and said suspects involved in recent shootings will be held accountable.

“We are arresting people,” he said. “We are filing for warrants.”

Jackson did provide a brief update on the Prendergast Avenue homicide. He said two people, Joseph A. Fontanez Walker and Kevin L. Roldan-Pantojas, have been charged in connection with the shooting though he said he couldn’t provide further information.

However, Chautauqua County District Attorney Jason Schmidt previously confirmed that Fontanez Walker has been charged with fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon and tampering with physical evidence while Roldan-Pantojas has been charged with second-degree criminal possession of a weapon and tampering with physical evidence. Further charges tied to the homicide are possible.

HOMELESS POPULATION

Sundquist and other city officials were questioned on the current homeless crisis. The mayor said he met with 60 local church leaders this week along with members of the Chautauqua Homeless Coalition earlier. He added that efforts to bring faith-based organizations into the discussion are ongoing.

The mayor said there are two shelters in the city currently available to handle the homeless population — one for men and another for women and children of domestic violence.

In the past, an average census showed there were about 25 to 30 homeless individuals within the city. However, Sundquist said that number has shot up recently to about 70 people in some areas.

“So it has risen rapidly across the city,” he said. “In many cases, it’s visible. We’ve always had homelessness, let’s be clear about that. We’ve always had it — it hasn’t been as visible as it has been.”

Sundquist said the recent increase to a degree can be attributed to financial strains caused by the pandemic and an increase in housing evictions.

He said it’s important to get more resources to organizations that provide assistance to the homeless while also bringing in more community members and faith organizations.

“When I have talked to other mayors,” Sundquist began, “they have found that when the faith leaders and the resource providers work together to create a partnership then they have been able to tackle emergency sheltering, getting resources to where people are, getting folks off the street. That’s a model that we are trying to do right here in the city of Jamestown.”