Fort Smith approves census resolution; talk police chief position

NWA Democrat-Gazette/DAVID GOTTSCHALK  Fort Smith City Building City Hall Fort Smith downtown offices.
NWA Democrat-Gazette/DAVID GOTTSCHALK Fort Smith City Building City Hall Fort Smith downtown offices.

FORT SMITH -- The city Board of Directors took a step meant to ensure city residents are accurately counted in the coming 2020 U.S. Census.

The board endorsed creating a Local Complete Count Committee during its meeting Tuesday. In a memo to City Administrator Carl Geffken, Deputy City Administrator Jeff Dingman said the committee is a tool used by many communities to engage all segments of the community to make sure they're counted in the census, including people and communities considered "hard to count."

Among communities considered hard to count, Dingman wrote, can be small children, senior citizens, university students, those who are homeless or transient, ethnic and religious groups, non-English speaking people or others who are reluctant to participate in the census. The census will be important in determining the allocation of federal money to state and local programs for the next 10 years, making an accurate count of all residents for the census key.

After the meeting, Dingman said the committee will be made up of about 20 to 25 people representing a "good cross section" of the community, specifically the hard-to-count communities who can help groups feel comfortable participating in the census. Identifying and inviting specific individuals to join the committee will take place soon.

Mayor George McGill is serving as the chairman of the Arkansas Complete Count Committee, established by Gov. Asa Hutchinson via executive order Aug. 28 to promote statewide participation in the census, according to a news release from Hutchinson's office the same day.

Directors were also given the opportunity to provide its input regarding the appointment of a police chief for the city during an executive session at the meeting. The three finalists for the position, which include Interim Police Chief Danny Baker, Little Rock Assistant Police Chief Alice Fulk and Palestine, Texas, Police Chief Andy Harvey, participated in a candidate-board of directors luncheon open to the public Monday, according to a Tuesday post on the Fort Smith Facebook page.

Geffken estimated an appointment to the position would be within a week.

"There's some more information that I'd like to get from our panels for police chief and have those conversations with them so they can give me their full input, like I just received from the Board of Directors," Geffken said.

NW News on 09/18/2019

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