Bilingual city employees, partnerships with police and a Hispanic Chamber of Commerce were some ideas discussed by Durango City Council on June 2 as it received updates from the city’s immigration task force.
Former Community and Cultural Relations Commission chair Scott Smith formally left the city commission several months ago, but he still donated his time Tuesday to present recommendations on how the city can better support its immigrant community.
The task force set out with seven general goals or principles in mind:
- Promote the safety of all.
- Promote inclusion, dignity and community trust.
- Encourage informed civic participation.
- Improve communication between residents and institutions.
- Strengthen public safety through collaboration.
- Support transparency and access to accurate information.
- Foster a welcoming and united community.
“The task force believes firmly that every person deserves dignity, safety and opportunity to thrive regardless of immigration status, language or cultural background,” Smith said.
He went on to describe immigrants’ contributions to the economy as “immense.”
“Every business, restaurant, food service, construction, landscaping – immigrants are absolutely vital to that fabric within our community on the economic level, let alone on a personal and human level,” he said. “Immigrants are part of our community and are extremely important and are already woven in, and it’s important that we make folks feel safe, welcome and heard.”
A key recommendation was the creation of two “community connector” staff positions that would help immigrants access information, resources and community services.
“If there’s a small business owner or someone who wants to open up a small business and predominantly does not speak English, one of these community connector positions within the city could help that person file for the correct fees, get all their licenses in order, all their ducks in a row so they can open up,” Smith said.
The task force similarly recommended providing salary incentives for bilingual police officers. Smith said having bilingual employees reduces language barriers and reinforces trust, inclusion and accessibility.
City Manager José Madrigal said the salary for such a role could range from $110,000 to $210,000 – not a small budgetary consideration.
Councilor Dave Woodruff suggested seeking grant funding to partially or fully fund such a role, if City Council were to adopt the recommendation.
A public messaging campaign was proposed to promote inclusivity and welcomeness that Smith said would likely consist of a partnership with community nonprofit groups. Similarly, a Bienvenidos (Welcome) program would educate immigrants about resources, cultural norms and legal standards in Durango and Colorado, including DUI laws, intimate partner violence, traffic laws and driver responsibilities.
“This is a curriculum that was developed around 20 years ago,” CCRC member Olivia de Pablo Lopez said. “... Back in the day, the municipal court used to use this curriculum to give consequences or hold accountable those people that commit traffic infractions because of the lack of knowledge of the new culture.”
The task force also recommended strengthening Durango Police Department’s relationship with the immigrant community through education, communication and community engagement.
“I know the DPD has already put a lot of effort toward that. I think that’s been reflected and a lot of people appreciate that. But I think continuing that would be the recommendation,” Smith said.
He said community safety workshops with bilingual support hosted by DPD would strengthen the police department’s relationship with the immigrant community. A strong relationship results in more trust, communication and safety, and less fear and misinformation, he said.
Police Chief Brice Current said he has held meetings with immigrant community members in the past, and he’s happy to continue them.
Councilor Kip Koso said he has seen immigrants respond positively to DPD officers because of the relationship building they’ve already put work into. He recalled specifically an example at a celebration at the West Mobile Home Park Co-Op.
“One of the things that really struck me is the councilors showed up and there was mediocre enthusiasm to have the councilors there,” Koso said. “When the chief showed up and the officers showed up, the kids lit up and the smiles were there. It was interesting to see how much connection they had with a lot of those residents, and I’ve seen that repeated in other situations as well.”
Other task force recommendations included Spanish and multilingual messaging for community updates, revisiting immigrant-friendly resolutions and a guide to peaceful protesting.
Councilors said some of the suggestions have already been undertaken by the city or other organizations, but they are open to improving processes.
Economic Opportunity Manager Tommy Crosby said Priscilla Newbold’s food business workgroup, which serves as a resource hub for non-English speaking entrepreneurs and receives support from the city, is a strong example of efforts already underway in the greater Durango community.
“That work has really rippled out. It started with a focus on just food businesses. But the line at Priscilla’s door now includes many entrepreneurs outside of just the food business realm,” he said. “That’s started to share an orbit with the Durango Chamber of Commerce.”
On the Chamber of Commerce, Crosby said the idea of creating a Hispanic Chamber of Commerce is gaining more attention. He said those are considered best practices in larger cities.
The task force will refine its recommendations before formally submitting them to City Council for consideration at a future meeting.
cburney@durangoherald.com
