A new advisory committee is set to be formed in Truckee as a resource for Police Chief Randy Billingsley regarding the formation of strategies, development of community policing concepts, and increasing public awareness.

The creation of a Chief’s Advisory Committee was unanimously approved Tuesday night during Truckee’s Town Council meeting, and will involve community members in a collaborative effort to increase communication between the department and residents of the area.

“The Chief’s Advisory Committee was really developed as an idea to respond to some of the national and regional narratives surrounding local law enforcement currently, and the current public perception of our business,” said Billingsley at Tuesday’s Truckee Town Council meeting. “We felt it was necessary to develop a more detailed dialogue with our community to show that we are committed to preserving the nobility and also the legitimacy of this profession.”

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The program is estimated to launch this summer and would include members of the community. Billingsley and Town Manager Jennifer Callaway will select the members of the committee from a pool of applicants with the intent on finding representation from a diverse cross section of the community. Terms on the committee would be one or two years with a limit of three years of service. The committee will be made up of six to 10 members, and meetings will take place once a month.

The committee is intended to serve as a sounding board for the chief, provide community feedback, give perspective on the community’s vision for police services and their role, and create greater connection between the police and community.

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“Previously, we’ve had great success with involving citizens into our organizations in the form of citizens police academies,” said Lt. Lisa Madden, who was sworn into her new role earlier at the Town Council meeting. “The Chief’s Advisory Committee is more focused on collaboration, but we’ve seen how important it is to connect with the community, and I believe this is an incredible step forward to serving our community in a thoughtful and community focused way.”

Those interested in participating in the committee will be able to fill out a questionnaire, which will be available later in May at http://www.truckeepolice.com.

Justin Scacco is a reporter for the Sierra Sun. Contact him at jscacco@sierrasun.com or 530-550-2643.