QUEENS — Jamaica police officers want to chat with residents over a cup of joe.
The 103rd Precinct, which covers Jamaica and Hollis, will host its first "Coffee with a Cop" — an informal event allowing residents to discuss their problems with officers while sipping a cup of coffee at a local Starbucks this Wednesday.
“It will allow community members’ access to uniformed personnel in an informal setting and provide an opportunity to converse with officers freely,” the precinct wrote in an email sent out to residents.
NOT a meeting. NOT a formal setting. NO speeches. NO bull. Just come & relax with real PoliceOfficers over some Java & real conversation. pic.twitter.com/CsyUX9WaJG
— NYPD 103rd Precinct (@NYPD103Pct) December 20, 2016
The initiative is the latest in a series of steps the precinct has taken to improve its relationship with the community.
In October, it also launched a new community policing program which assigns several "neighborhood coordination officers,” or NCOs, to specific geographic beats in Jamaica and Hollis, in order to get to know local residents and their problems.
Some of the NCOs will be present at the event, the precinct said.
Similar events have been held throughout the country since 2011.
The program, which according to the precinct “is one of the most successful community oriented policing programs across the country,” has also expanded to other countries, including Canada and Australia.
“The key to Coffee with a Cop’s growing success is that it opens the door for interactions outside of the crisis situations that typically bring law enforcement officers and community members together,” the precinct wrote in its email.
The "Coffee with a Cop" event will take place on Wed., Dec. 21 from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Starbucks at 89-02 Sutphin Blvd. Coffee will be complimentary to all who participate.
