The city of Cincinnati is positioned to spend an additional $5.4 million this year on public safety following a summer of high-profile incidents and debates about violent crime here and across the country.
Council's Budget and Finance Committee on Monday approved the funding package based on a proposal by Council members Jeff Cramerding, Mark Jeffreys, Meeka Owens, and Seth Walsh. The final package included about $700,000 in additional funding for police overtime and other measures proposed by Owens and Cramerding.
Not everyone was a fan of the package Council arrived at. Council members Victoria Parks, Scotty Johnson, and Vice Mayor Jan-Michele Lemon Kearney voted against the plan. Kearney said while the need for more police overtime is urgent, the package didn't provide enough funding for violence prevention programs that address the root causes of crime.
Council will take a final vote Wednesday.
Where the funding comes from
About $4.6 million of the money comes from a kind of city reserve fund called the General Fund Contingency Account. That comes from the city's carryover budget process every year. The rest comes from a city weather reserve fund.
What's included in the funding?
The plan includes increased spending for police visibility and overtime, technology, and public outreach.
While some of the spending is aimed at increasing the number of officers out in the community, other dollars will go toward initiatives like police drones and lighting in some areas, as well as programs designed to prevent crime, like curfew centers for young people.
"We cannot rely solely on police presence to help people feel safe," City Manager Sheryl Long said. "Police can't be everywhere."
Here's the breakdown of the funding:
Public visibility overtime for CPD — $1.2 million: This would cover overtime across the city. The money could also go to other public safety needs if it's not spent on police overtime by the end of the year. Council would make that call.
DOTE/CPD streetlighting and cameras — $1.2 million: This funding will go toward installing more lighting in areas with chronic crime and nuisance complaints. It also will go to updating existing cameras and installing new cameras in strategic locations.
In addition, the funding package includes more money for these specific security camera measures:
- CPD West End camera expansion — $150,000
- Mobile safety camera trailers — $100,000
- Fusus expansion — $100,000: Fusus is the network of security cameras CPD can monitor. Some allow real-time access to security footage.
- License plate readers — $360,000: this money would be used to replace the city's current license plate readers. Those are more than 10 years old. The new readers would be able to connect into the Fusus network.
- CGIC/PIVOT drones — $40,000: additional funding for CPD's Crime Gun Intelligence Center.
- Drone expansion — $100,000: would be used to expand CPD's "drones as first responders" program.
3CDC expanded ambassador program — $880,000: this funding would add nine new ambassadors for a year. 3CDC runs the Downtown Ambassador program. It employs roughly 85 people who remove graffiti and trash. They also engage the public, providing directions and other non-law enforcement aid.
Bond and Sentencing project — $250,000: funding to hire a group called Measures for Justice to study data around bond and sentencing practices in Cincinnati and peer cities in partnership with Hamilton County.
Youth Outreach Workers — $200,000: money to pay workers who engage young people in the city as an effort to prevent violence.
Curfew center — $195,000 for Lighthouse and $185,000 for Seven Hills: funding for curfew centers for young people in Corryville and the West End. Cincinnati Police say no young people have had to be sent to the curfew centers at this point.
Findlay Market safety improvements — $150,000: for security measures like cameras and lighting on Race Street near Findlay Market
CPD recruitment efforts — $90,000
PIVOT specialized training — $30,000: PIVOT stands for Place Based Investigations of Violent Offender Territories. It's based on the idea that most violent crime takes place in a few locations and is committed by a few offenders in a community.
Where are police currently focusing?
Police Chief Teresa Theetge told Council officers worked 15,000 hours of police visibility overtime patrolling the city in August. That's par for the course for this time of year, she said. Officers work roughly 11,000 such hours in the average January, she added.
The officers who worked that overtime were drawn from all CPD districts, but most of the patrols took place Downtown and in neighboring communities like Over-the-Rhine.
Some Council members expressed concerns about the focus on the Central Business District and District 1.
Vice Mayor Kearney said other neighborhoods like Winton Hills and Price Hill also are asking for more police patrols, security cameras, and other measures.
"We need to see concern and investment in all our neighborhoods, especially the ones that are experiencing hotspots," she said.
Kearney also advocated for more than $1.5 million for youth jobs and violence intervention programs like Youth2Work and Advance Peace, though a vote to approve that funding failed. Kearney said some things like police overtime are urgent, but others aren't.
"Some of these issues can wait and we can use that money elsewhere," she said.
Theetge said the resources are going where the need is.
"Because of what we've seen throughout the summer, we've had a concentrated effort in the urban core," Theetge said. "It's no secret that Downtown can be a target-rich environment because of all the activity that goes on there."
Latest crime data
Cincinnati Police data up to Sept. 5 shows the city had 46 homicides so far this year. That represents a decline from both the three-year average for this time of year (50.7) and from this time last year (53). Aggravated assaults also are down slightly over both the three-year average and from this time last year, though robberies are up about 2%.
But crime levels vary significantly by neighborhood. Police data from the city's Central Business District as of Sept. 5 shows 40 robberies so far in 2025, an increase from the three-year average of about 22. Aggravated assaults also are up — 25 so far this year compared to the roughly 20 recorded in the three-year average.
So far, there have been no homicides in the Central Business District. Last year there were three.
But in neighboring District 1, which includes Over-the-Rhine and the West End, there have been 13 homicides this year. That's up from the three-year average of seven. Other violent crimes are down slightly there, but most property crimes are up somewhat.
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