The city’s Office of Oversight and Public Accountability launched a new online portal designed to streamline how residents interact with staff and address problems.
Residents can submit compliments or grievances about interactions with police or fire staff, challenge internal affairs decisions, and request help expunging criminal records.
The portal consolidates six separate processes into a single accessible site, automatically routing submissions to the correct OPA staff member with built-in case tracking, deadlines, and a transparent audit trail.
Nick Derkye, Office of Oversight and Public Accountability manager, says it’s easy to submit about an issue and then track the city’s response.
“If you create an account when you submit your compliment or complaint, you don't have to, but if you do, it'll start in progress and then go to pending and through the steps of investigation and those statuses will be automatically sent. As we update the complaint or compliment, they get emailed to the account that you signed up for if you decide to do that. “
Residents can also propose training topics for public safety and request educational workshops for local organizations.
The portal is on the Grand Rapids OPA webpage.
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