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ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WHEC) — Mayor Malik Evans held a news conference Thursday to talk about the city’s violence prevention efforts and the search for a new police chief.

Evans announced all of the city’s programs will now be centralized under the mayor’s office and led by Special Advisor to the Mayor, Victor Saunders. Those programs include Pathways to Peace, the Office of Neighborhood Safety, and the Peacemaker Fellowship Program.

As for finding a new police chief, Evans emphasized his administration will be seeking "significant" input from the community as they continue a nationwide search. He announced that a citizen survey will be posted on the city’s website seeking feedback through Feb. 4. That will be followed by community meetings.

He hopes to have a chief in place by spring and offered his thanks to interim Chief David Smith for "holding down the police department" during the search.

Just Wednesday, there were three separate shootings and a stabbing. One man died in a shooting on N Clinton Avenue and Rialto Street.

In 2021, RPD data did show that crime as a whole went down by 11%. However, violent crime shot up, including 81 homicides in 2021 compared to 51 in 2020.