City leaders plan to expand a police program dedicated to homeless outreach, increase city cleaning crews and stand up a new fire department program pairing emergency workers with mental health specialists.

Salem city councilors discussed an early vision for both near-term and long-term plans to address issues related to safety and cleanliness downtown and in northeast Salem during a Wednesday evening work session.

The conversation focused on city plans to increase police presence and help mitigate petty crime and unsanitary conditions in the two parts of Salem where data shows most calls for police and emergency medical response are dispatched.

That comes after months of calls from business leaders for the city to do more to clean up Salem streets.

Interim City Manager Krishna Namb

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