After a volley of open letters to each other (here, here and here…with a scathing letter from the Local Teamster 445, to which ALBB sought clarification for intentions here), Beacon’s Police Benevolent Association (PBA) by way of Vice President Michael Confield and Beacon’s Mayor Lee Kyriacou have issued a joint statement of support and cooperation to move forward with direct communication with each other. This also follows a “Support The Beacon PD” rally in Beacon last Sunday, which was met with voices from the Black Lives Movement.

The City of Beacon issued the following press release on Monday, July 27, 2020:

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BEACON, NY: Mayor Lee Kyriacou and Beacon PBA Vice President Michael Confield jointly announced their commitment for the City and police union to communicate regularly and productively on issues affecting police, the City and the community.

Late Friday afternoon and on Sunday, representatives of the Beacon Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association met with City Administrator Anthony Ruggiero and Mayor Lee Kyriacou for lengthy open and productive conversations – involving listening, information sharing, assurances of respect and agreement on communication going forward.

Mayor Kyriacou and PBA Vice President Confield together stated, “We’re both appreciative of the open dialogue and are committed to making sure that city and police leadership are listening and sharing viewpoints.”

Separately, Mayor Kyriacou said, “I truly appreciate and applaud the PBA for reaching out, and working together to close the communication gap. All of us agreed that we should have reached out sooner, and that going forward, the communication will be frequent and open.”

PBA Vice President Confield also added, “Our conversations were very productive. We appreciate the Mayor’s and Administrator’s willingness to hear our concerns, and look forward to ensuring that everyone is heard in the ongoing process of improving police-community relations.”

The Mayor added, “Each time I greet an officer, my first words are ‘thank you’ and more recently, ‘I appreciate the difficult situation you are in.’ That support continues unabated.”

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