Being a Good Witness

Crimes are frequently solved as a result of a partnership between the community and its police department. The Town of Danville believes this partnership is vital to keeping our community safe from criminals. We can do our part in apprehending those taking advantage of our citizens, and we rely on residents to report crimes without intervening. Without this vital link between the police department and citizens, crimes may go unreported and unsolved.

Remember, your safety comes first: Being a good witness means not placing yourself or others in danger. Remain calm enough to call the police and provide critical information. It's better not to confront or get involved in a conflict with the suspect. Never put yourself in between a suspect and his/her escape route.

The most important role residents can take in supporting officers is to be a good witness. When calling 911 or the police, you may be asked to provide details about the suspects such as:

• Gender

• Race/Ethnicity

• Height — Sometimes difficult; you may use an object to compare the subject’s height with.

• Weight/Build — slim, heavy, muscular, etc.

• Facial Features — clean shaven, mustache, beard, etc.

• Clothing Description to include footwear — type and color, etc.

• Any other characteristic features — scars, tattoos, glasses, etc.

If the suspects(s) are in a vehicle, be prepared to describe the vehicle and provide a direction of travel from the scene. With your help, we can keep our community safe. Report incidents by calling 911 or the Danville Police Department Dispatch at 925-820-2144.

The Town of Danville adopted its 2023–2031 General Plan Housing Element on January 17 and submitted it to the State Department of Housing and Community Development (State HCD) before the statuary deadline, on January 31. State HCD is required to review and determine if the Housing Element meets all requirements of State Housing law within 60 days.

Danville, along with the vast majorities of cities and counties, has since received a comment letter from State HCD. In its letter, the State determined that Danville’s Housing Element met many, but not all, of the statutory requirements. Specifically, State HCD believes that many of the Town’s housing development standards — particularly those associated with height and parking requirements — must be less restrictive. The Town is working to address the comments received, with the goal of re-submitting to State HCD by the end of summer.

As a reminder, for the upcoming 2023–2031 planning period, the Town is expected to accommodate a minimum of 2,241 new homes, regardless of available land capacity. To date, just 19 out of the 109 cities in the San Francisco Bay Area have a State-certified Housing Element.

For more information about the Housing Element and to read the comment letter, visit www.danvilletowntalks.org/ housingelement

Town Launches New Ema I L Newsletter

No matter how you want to receive updates from the Town of Danville, you’re covered, with the addition of a new monthly email newsletter. Community members can sign up to receive updates on key projects and initiatives covered in this print newsletter, and also take a look at the month ahead in Danville.

In May, the Town switched its social media accounts to the @DanvilleCAgov handle, and consolidated all Town social media accounts into one. This helped residents find one source for the latest daily updates. Now the new Live Locally Update monthly email newsletter will give residents a handy guide to events, road work, news, programs, and more directly in their inbox.

With the launch of this new email publication, the Town is following both best practices and federal anti-spam guidelines, so recipients will need to sign up for this newsletter even if they already receive some emails from the Town. It’s very easy to start receiving this monthly email, and easy to unsubscribe if you’re not enjoying it. To sign up for the Live Locally Update monthly email newsletter, and to see the many ways to stay connected to the Town of Danville, visit www.danville.ca.gov/ stayconnected.