What is the purpose of OCS?
The Office of Community Safety (OCS) exists to strengthen Fayetteville’s public safety ecosystem by addressing the gaps that traditional enforcement and emergency services alone cannot fill. OCS focuses on building collaborative, preventative approaches across four key pillars: violence interruption, mental health response, youth opportunity, and homelessness risk reduction.
At its core, OCS is designed to reduce reliance on police intervention as a one-size-fits-all response to complex human services needs. Rather than responding after harm occurs, OCS is structured to support proactive, community-centered solutions that empower residents, connect them to critical resources, and strengthen social infrastructure.
The office also serves as the connective tissue between neighborhoods, service providers, and city systems, ensuring that individuals and families in crisis don’t fall through the cracks. While OCS cannot solve every issue, it is uniquely positioned to build the relationships, coordination, and trust necessary to deliver long-term impact across our most vulnerable populations.
What are our top 3 priorities for the rest of 2025?
- Landscape Analysis: Conduct a comprehensive assessment of community safety needs, existing resources, and service gaps to inform OCS priorities and partnerships.
- Establish Foundation for Sustainable Programming: Develop the operational, fiscal, and partnership infrastructure needed to support long-term, community-driven safety initiatives.
- Create Rapid Response Model: Design and implement a coordinated response framework to address emerging safety concerns and connect residents to timely, non-enforcement support.
What makes OCS different from the Police, Fire, or other City departments?
The Office of Community Safety operates as a collaborative, solutions-focused connector, centering its work on care, coordination, and prevention rather than enforcement or regulation. It was created to build long-term safety through relationships, not just responses.
OCS is grounded in the voices and lived experiences of the community. Its initiatives are developed with, for, and alongside the people they serve—ensuring that those most affected by safety challenges help shape the strategies to address them. The office exists to support residents in navigating services, building trust in public systems, and co-creating safety solutions that reflect local needs and realities.
OCS advances community safety by investing in social infrastructure, collaboration, connection, and care. By strengthening partnerships and supporting those closest to the work, OCS helps build the collective capacity of individuals, families, and neighborhoods to create lasting safety and well-being.
How will residents see or interact with OCS in their neighborhoods?
Residents will interact with the Office of Community Safety (OCS) through a consistent, visible presence in their neighborhoods and across the city. Whether in formal settings like town halls, community forums, or neighborhood watch meetings, or informal spaces like festivals, sporting events, and city-sponsored activities, OCS will be there to listen, support, and engage.
We envision attending established community meetings and partnering with local organizations to build trust and offer information. As the department grows, OCS will identify community leaders and key stakeholders to help guide efforts and strengthen relationships, particularly in areas experiencing the greatest need.
The OCS website will also serve as a central place for residents to learn about the office, stay informed about programs and resources, and understand how to connect with the team directly helping clear up misconceptions and making OCS approachable and accessible citywide.
What do we want community members, council, and partners to know right now?
The Office of Community Safety is being built with intention and urgency, grounded in the goals that inspired its creation. Our team is focused on establishing a sustainable, community-centered office that delivers real impact and reflects the vision shared by residents, advocates, and city leadership.
This office isn’t symbolic, it’s an active, evolving effort driving meaningful change across Fayetteville. We’re committed to showing up, sharing results, and working side by side with the community to shape a safer, more connected city.
What types of responses do we envision OCS coordinating by FY26?
By FY26, the Office of Community Safety will be a fully coordinated department with clear initiatives aligned to its four foundational pillars: community-based violence prevention, mental health response, youth engagement, and homelessness risk reduction.
Each pillar will have defined programming or partnerships in place, guided by strategic planning and built to support the community’s safety and well-being. The department will serve as a centralized hub that strengthens the City’s ability to connect residents to the services and systems they need, while also helping those systems coordinate more effectively with one another.
OCS will have completed several foundational studies that inform and validate its approach, including call data analysis, violence intervention strategies, and encampment response models. Staff will be expanded and organized to support each pillar with dedicated leadership and support. A restructured street engagement team will be fully active and focused on unsheltered homelessness and public space interventions. Simultaneously, the department will be developing a pilot program for a mental health co-response model, targeted for launch in the following fiscal year.
What are the most common misconceptions we can clear up here?
The Office of Community Safety operates independently from law enforcement and is not a police oversight body. While we collaborate closely with public safety partners, our focus is prevention, intervention, and response, not enforcement or investigation. OCS exists to strengthen connections, coordinate resources, and support community-led approaches to safety. We know lasting change doesn’t come from any one department, it’s built through trust, collaboration, and shared responsibility. Our role is to help create the conditions for community-driven solutions that reduce harm and prevent violence across Fayetteville.