ComEd, Metropolitan Mayors Caucus Partner to Support 21 Public Safety Projects Throughout Northern Illinois
$170,000 granted to fund innovative safety initiatives
In support of innovative public safety initiatives that are essential to
local communities across northern Illinois, ComEd and the Metropolitan
Mayors Caucus today announced grants of up to $10,000 each to 21
communities to fund local public safety
projects.
Each of the 21 projects to receive a Powering Safe Communities grant
proposed a unique way to improve the efficiency and delivery of
public safety programs, increase community resiliency, and address
unmet safety needs. The Metropolitan Mayors Caucus — a council for
Chicagoland’s chief elected officials to collaborate on public policy
issues — reviewed all applications.
"At ComEd, safety is our number one priority — not just for our
employees and our customers, but for the greater communities where we
live, work, and play,” said Terence
R. Donnelly, president and COO of ComEd. “For the last few years,
we’ve delivered on that promise by partnering with the Metropolitan
Mayors Caucus to carry out the Powering Safe Communities Program. We are
pleased to see proposals from this year’s grantees to invest in
innovative technologies that will strengthen their response to critical
safety and health concerns.”
ComEd and the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus share a commitment to ensuring
that residents of northern Illinois are protected in their communities.
Working together through the Powering Safe Communities partnership, they
have put this commitment into action, delivering more than $500,000 in
funding to 70 public safety projects in the last three years. ComEd has
provided funding for the program since its inception four years ago, and
the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus has served as the program administrator
for the last three grant cycles.
“The Metropolitan Mayors Caucus knows that we are stronger as a region
because of the tireless work of our public servants. That’s why it’s so
important to us that our local municipalities have the resources they
need to keep both our public servants and the community members they
protect safe and secure,” said Joseph Mancino, Mayor of Hawthorn Woods,
Ill., and Chairman of the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus. “Thanks to ComEd’s
generous support, we are once again able to realize this goal and assist
over 20 local communities as they pursue tailored public safety
solutions.”
Information on the Powering Safe Communities Program can be found here: http://mayorscaucus.org/initiatives/environment/psc/.
The 21 Powering Safe Communities grant recipients for 2018 are:
Village of Alsip
This grant helps fund equipment, goods, and services for the recently
approved volunteer Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) run by the
Village of Alsip’s Department of Emergency Preparedness (DEP). CERT
educates individuals about disaster preparedness for hazards that may
impact their area and trains them in basic disaster response skills,
such as fire safety, light search and rescue, team organization, and
disaster medical operations.
Village of Arlington Heights
This grant allows the Village to purchase a Smart Board display to
enhance disaster preparedness and community resiliency. In combination
with other equipment that will be funded by the Village, the Smart Board
display will augment the decision-making process in the Emergency
Operations Center (EOC).
Village of Barrington
This grant funds the purchase of two Lucas CPR mechanical assist
devices. These battery-powered units enhance paramedics’ lifesaving
efforts for cardiac arrest patients through automated chest
compressions, allowing paramedics to concentrate on more advanced
resuscitative skills, such as IV access, medication delivery,
defibrillation, and advanced airway management.
Village of Bull Valley
This grant helps purchase a front-end loader, a tailgate mounted salt
spreader, and a ditch bank mower, three pieces of equipment that will
improve the safety of Village roads. Funding from the Village will also
aid in the purchase and provide safety training for employees who use
the equipment.
Village of Cary
This grant allows the Village to purchase two solar-powered RADAR
message signs with trailers. The Village currently possesses only a
single arrow board that does not have the capability to display other
messages. The new units will serve as replacements for both the arrow
board and radar trailer, providing greater flexibility for the Public
Works and Police Departments.
City of Countryside
This grant helps purchase and install high-definition video cameras at
the City’s most attended parks, Ideal Park and Countryside Park. This
modern equipment will capture vital evidence in the event of a serious
criminal incident, while bringing a heightened sense of safety and
security to the neighborhood.
Village of Crete
This grant supports the purchase of three Thermal Imaging Cameras, two
for the Police Department and one for Crete’s Emergency Management
Agency (EMA). The cameras will be installed on specific patrol vehicles
to greatly enhance the ability to see at night by combining night optics
with heat sensing ability.
City of Crystal Lake
This grant enables the City to install electronic speed limit displays
along Country Club Road to aid in calming traffic. The road, which is in
a residential area, currently experiences a high incidence of speeding,
with measurements at various locations showing speeds between 36 and 39
miles-per-hour (mph) when the posted speed limit is 25 mph.
Village of Elburn
This grant assists in purchasing traffic speed monitoring and safety
signs. The signs will be used in neighborhoods, business areas, and
around schools in the Village to monitor speeds and provide visual
reminders to motorists.
City of Elgin
This grant allows the Elgin Police Department to equip two parks that
experience a high level of youth engagement with pole-mounted security
cameras. The new cameras will improve the overall safety and security of
the area for teens and young children, as well as disincentivize
activity in the parks after they close.
Village of Flossmoor
This grant funds two portable, programmable, and energy-efficient speed
display signs to be used at multiple locations throughout the Village.
The signs will allow the Village to set sign configurations, schedule
operating modes, and gather traffic data for analysis. The Village’s
goal is to increase motorists' awareness of their traveling speed in
school zones and achieve better adherence to speed limits on residential
streets.
Village of Glendale Heights
This grant funds the purchase of a portable 10-print fingerprinting
system, which will allow the Glendale Heights Police Department to
provide safe and private fingerprinting services to community members,
local businesses, and school districts. It will also provide a private,
secure location for juvenile offenders to be printed. Currently, the
Department has only one stationary fingerprinting machine located in the
adult section of its holding facility.
Village of Hebron
This grant allows the Village to purchase a new squad car to provide
full-time police protection coverage. The Village recently added two
full-time officers and made the chief of police a full-time position;
however, its current squad cars are not reliable and break down often.
With the grant, the Village will purchase a new 2018 Dodge Charger
Pursuit through the NWMC Suburban Purchasing Cooperative.
Village of La Grange
This grant helps fund the purchase of four solar-powered speed display
signs to be placed throughout the Village of La Grange. The display
signs will not only provide a visual reminder to drivers of their
current speed, but they also can be used to determine the amount of
traffic in an area so that the La Grange Police Department can deploy
its officers more efficiently.
Village of Minooka
This grant funds the purchase of a speed display sign and LED school
zone sign. The signs will be used in conjunction to visually notify
vehicle drivers of their speed and alert drivers that they are entering
a school zone by displaying bright LED blinkers.
City of Northlake
This grant aids with the installation of a backup, natural gas fired,
electrical generator at the public works facility. The generator will
allow the facility to operate during power outages. It is the last
City-owned building that does not have a backup power source.
City of Oak Forest
This grant helps expand the City’s AED (automated external
defibrillator) program from nine to 20 units to help diagnose and treat
community members suffering from life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias.
The City will replace existing AED units and deploy 11 AEDs in public
buildings and on the street in police, fire, EMA, and public works
vehicles.
City of Polo
This grant allows the City to update the electrical services at Millard
Deuth Park, as the City is a small community that does not have a park
district to cover the costs. The update will turn off electrical
currents when the breaker is shut off, decreasing the likelihood of a
dangerous fire outburst.
City of Rolling Meadows
This grant helps fund the City’s Automated External Defibrillators
(AEDs) Acquisition project through the purchase of six LIFE PAK CR Plus
Semi-Automatic AEDs. Currently, none of the City’s patrol squads are
equipped with AEDs. The grant will help enable patrol personnel of the
Rolling Meadows Police Department to safely, effectively, and quickly
administer and deploy life-saving external defibrillators to anyone
suffering from cardiac arrest.
Village of Willowbrook
This grant funds the purchase and installation of 12 solar-powered LED
stop signs at specific locations throughout the Village to improve the
safety of both drivers and pedestrians. The 12 locations, including two
near elementary schools, currently have traditional, unlit stop signs
and are in need of upgraded signage.
Village of Worth
This grant funds the replacement of 12 tower type computers for the
Worth Police Department. The new computers will allow the Department to
effectively communicate with other public safety agencies in the region
using a new “Superion Public Safety Records Management System.” The
enhanced technology, through the speed and accuracy of data acquisition,
will also improve the Department’s ability to comply with its mission of
serving and protecting community residents and visitors.
About ComEd
Commonwealth Edison Company (ComEd) is a unit of Chicago-based Exelon
Corporation (NYSE: EXC), the nation's leading competitive energy
provider, with approximately 10 million customers. ComEd provides
service to approximately 4 million customers across northern Illinois,
or 70 percent of the state's population. For more information visit ComEd.com,
and connect with the company on Facebook,
Twitter,
and YouTube.
About Metropolitan Mayors Caucus
The Metropolitan Mayors Caucus is a membership organization of the
Chicago region's 275 cities, towns and villages. Founded in 1997 by then
Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley and leading mayors from nine suburban
municipal groups, the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus pushes past
geographical boundaries and local interests to work on public policy
issues. The caucus provides a forum for metropolitan Chicago's chief
elected officials to collaborate on common problems and work toward a
common goal of improving the quality of life for the millions of people
who call the region home. For more information visit http://mayorscaucus.org/.
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