AKRON, Ohio — Fresh off of his ceremonial swearing-in over the weekend, Akron Mayor Shammas Malik is set to hold his first community town hall this week.
The focus of Malik's town hall will be on the city's search for its next police chief. The event will take place on Thursday, Jan. 11 from 6-7:30 p.m. at Garfield CLC on 1326 Brown Street.
“Community engagement and transparency will be cornerstones to everything we do as a city government,” said Malik in a statement. “This townhall and the community surveys are just a first step in receiving input and feedback from our residents regarding the type of leader they’d like to see at the Akron Police Department. I invite everyone to join us and lend their voice to the conversation."
Several speakers and guests are scheduled to join Malik for the town hall:
- Akron Chief of Strategy Nanette Pitt
- State Sen. Vernon Sykes
- Retired Akron Police Captain Sylvia Trundle
- Senior Pastor at St. Ashworth Temple/Transition co-chair Robert Dejournett
Residents are being encouraged to fill out a community survey related to the police chief search here.
Steve Mylett's retirement as the chief of police in Akron took effect on Jan. 1. He is leaving law enforcement to take a job in the private sector following a rocky two-year tenure leading Akron's police department.
Last week, Malik spoke with 3News' Neil Fischer about priorities for his first 100 days in office. He told Fischer that the process of hiring a successor for Mylett would take approximately three to five months, but added that the city would hold meetings to gather community input.
"I have a number of things I want to see," the mayor said when asked what he'd like in a new chief. Along with a focus on "integrity," he cited, "experience with a larger organization, commitment to some of the proactive policing that I want to do with community policing, and building trust with residents."
