Public Safety Committee

CITY OF CHARLESTON 10 West Virginia Council Member – 10th WARD Shawn Taylor Public Safety Committee, Chair 501 Virginia St. E Finance Committee Charleston, WV 25301 Parking Committee Telephone: 304-414-6019 E-mail: shawn@shawntaylor.com TO: Public Safety Committee FROM: Shawn Taylor, Chair RE: Committee Meeting There will be a Committee meeting of Public Safety on March 16, 2026 at 5:30 PM City Hall, 501 Virginia St. E. AV Room #308 AGENDA APPROVAL OF PREVIOUS MINUTES 1. 11-17-2025 PUBLIC SPEAKERS 1. To hear from public speakers on public safety related topics. Register with a representative from the Clerk's Office no earlier than 15 minutes prior to the meeting at the stated meeting location. Time limits may be set by the Committee. TO HEAR FROM PUBLIC SAFETY RELATED DEPARTMENTS 1. Charleston Police Department 2. Charleston Fire Department ST/ns *Meetings may be recorded and broadcast via internet https://charlestonwv.civicclerk Page | 1 of  MINUTES PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE MEETING 6:00 P. M., NOVEMBER 17, 2025 AV ROOM, CITY HALL Shawn Taylor, Chair, called the meeting of the Charleston City Council Committee on Public Safety to order at 6:00 p.m., November 17, 2025. Present: Shawn Taylor, Chair Chuck Overstreet, Vice Chair Caitlin Cook Mary Beth Hoover Beth Kerns Absent: Kathy Rubio Bruce King Other Councilmembers Present: Frank Annie Emmett Pepper Joe Solomon Harper Gardner Chelsea Steelhammer Joseph Jenkins 1. APPROVAL OF PREVIOUS MINUTES – Councilmember Hoover moved to approve the minutes of the previous meeting on 7-21- 2025. Councilmember Cook seconded the motion. There was no objection, and the minutes were approved. 1 Page | 2 of  2. To hear from public speakers on public safety related topics None 3. TO HEAR FROM PUBLIC SAFETY RELATED DEPARTMENTS - • Charleston Police Department Police Chief Dempsey stated that their current number of 152 officers is mostly due to retirement or resignations for various reasons. However, they are expecting to hire five more within the next month. They are planning to meet with the architects to go over the plans for the new Public Safety building. The Take-Home-Car Program is going very well as it lowers maintenance costs for the City. Chief Dempsey added that they are working to update their Policy Manual. Councilmember Taylor asks how frequently they are staffed at full capacity. Chief Dempsey replied that it has been several years, however, lower numbers such as these are still manageable. Councilmember Overstreet replied that 173 officers is considered fully staffed. • Charleston Fire Department Assistant Fire Chief Dunbar stated that the renovations of Stations 2 and 4 have recently begun. The recent bridge closure has required a few Units to be moved to different Stations. The long-awaited fire boat is expected to be delivered in December. Captain White introduced the Fire Department’s first Accelerant Detection Canine, Pancake. Pancake is certified to detect over 300 accelerants used in fires and explosions. Captain White added that in the last month, they have responded to 1,746 calls for service. They have had ten structure fires, with no fatalities. However, three firefighters were injured. Pancake has detected nine different accelerants from the fires, which have gone to the lab for further analysis. Councilmember Cook asked if the bridge closure affect response time. Chief Dunbar replied that it did not since they were able to adjust their response areas. Councilmember Overstreet confirmed with Chief Dunbar that all planned renovations to the stations are supposed to be completed within a year. Councilmember Hoover motioned to adjourn the meeting. 2 Page | 3 of