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Mayor says bike patrols successful, will be reinstituted in neighborhoods

Posted at 9:50 AM, Jul 22, 2016
and last updated 2016-07-22 12:45:11-04

The City of Cleveland held the final press briefing in regards to the Republican National Convention on Friday morning. 

Mayor Frank Jackson and Chief of Police Calvin Williams addressed the factors that allowed the city to host what many considered a successful convention. 

WATCH THE BRIEFING IN THE VIDEO PLAYER BELOW

 

The mayor noted three successes of the past week. He said allowing Republicans the opportunity to host a convention was the first major success. Keeping visitors, delegates, politicians, protesters and law enforcement officers safe and secure was the second, and establishing Cleveland as the model for major events like the RNC was the third. Jackson said he hoped this week would set the standard, nationally and internationally, for how cities should conduct themselves during major gatherings. 

The mayor and Chief Williams went on to thank several different entities. They thanked the administration and governor for the blessing and support to secure the RNC in Cleveland. They thanked the law enforcement partners that supported security for the week and they congratulated the community for positive interactions with law enforcement. 

Mayor Jackson also noted the behind the scenes work that kept the downtown area clean while an estimated 1.5 million visitors roamed the streets. 

Jackson also went on to discuss the financial contributions the city had to make for the convention. They contributed about $2.5 million to the convention, and spent an estimated $50 million in riot insurance, something the mayor said was superfluous in hindsight. 

Chief Williams said that there will be no Cleveland police going to Philadelphia to support the Democratic National Convention next week. He mentioned that there were Philadelphia officers in Cleveland to observe law enforcement  during the Convention and he would be communicating with the Philadelphia police command center during the DNC. 

In a somewhat cryptic remark, Chief Williams said there was preemptive intelligence that prevented some things from happen. He did say that every group that wanted to come and demonstrate or protest was able to. 

Both the mayor and chief reiterated how vital the bike patrols were to maintaining order and safety during the Convention. In a tweet released during the briefing, Cleveland police said they will keep the bikes from the RNC and reinstitute the bike patrols in neighborhoods. 

They also stressed the wide range of preparations that kept the Convention running smoothly, such as maintaining the sanitation of the downtown area, the plans to reroute and organize traffic and the comprehensive plans to keep comfort, cleanliness and ease of access at a premium during the event. 

Chief Williams said there were no significant terrorist threats during the Convention. He said the basic parade route set from the beginning and only changed the event zone slightly after challenges by the ACLU in court.