High Turnout Thursday for St. Cloud Public Safety Town Hall

(KNSI) – St. Cloud Mayor Jake Anderson is committing to holding town halls once a quarter. Each will have a distinct theme, with the first held on Thursday focusing on public safety.

Presenting to the overflow crowd was Police Chief Jeff Oxton. One of five trends he highlighted was an increase in juvenile crime.

Oxton says it applies to an entire category of police calls, anything from Nerf wars to fights and suspicious activity. But more serious offenses are cropping up, too. “We are seeing a little bit of the stolen vehicle issue. Our gun issue is not even remotely close to what it is 60 miles from here, but we have, over the past few years, seen some increases in that.”

Oxton notes the city’s only murder in 2025 was a 17-year-old. The SCPD and District 742 are trying to curb the overall juvenile crime trend. Oxton added that overall violent crime continues to decrease gradually, as it has for the past 30 years.

Also presenting was the St. Cloud Fire Department, which discussed how they have created specialized squads for medical calls. They involve two people arriving in a customized SUV, which frees up resources like engines and ladder trucks specifically for fire calls. Another benefit is reduced wear and tear on expensive equipment that is often backlogged and hard to obtain.

They also covered the work of the fire marshal to bolster code enforcement, making sure structures across the city are less susceptible to fire. Lastly, Chief Matt Love went over the benefits that will come with Fire Station Six, which voters approved in November.

Only one topic was brought up by multiple agencies. The Health and Inspections Department, which handles housing and code enforcement in the city, and police mentioned an uptick in graffiti incidents. The talk included a reminder that property owners are responsible for removing vandalism from their buildings within 24 hours.

Oxton promised that the department was serious about finding the perpetrators and nearly guaranteed an arrest is coming. “We have seen a spike recently. I think it’s limited to just a couple people doing it, and I think we’re going to catch them.”

Oxton encourages anyone whose property has been affected to document it and report it. The hope is to tie a suspect to multiple incidents, which can upgrade the offense to a felony and possibly result in restitution for cleaning up the mess.

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