Traffic Unit returns to Gresham streets

Restored unit gives Police dedicated capacity to address traffic concerns

Thanks to the community's support of the Fire and Police Levy, the Gresham Police Department's Traffic Unit returned to full-time enforcement on July 20, making good on a promise to address one of the community's top concerns.

The restored unit focuses specifically on traffic concerns, adding dedicated enforcement capacity while allowing patrol officers to focus on other needs while continuing to address traffic issues between 911 calls.

"Having the Traffic Unit back is already having tangible results," said Lt. Balzer. "We're able to dedicate more time and attention to traffic concerns across the community."

Comparing July and August of 2025 and 2026, traffic stops increased by 40.5%, while citations issued increased by 101.3%.

Building back specialty teams

As the department continues recruiting, hiring and training officers, it has been able to staff additional specialty units.

These assignments include adding an officer to the Neighborhood Engagement Team (NET) and assigning a full-time officer to the Ceasefire initiative.

These assignments, which began October 1, will remain in place as long as staffing is steady enough to support them.

NET works with other City departments to address livability concerns, including abandoned property and park issues, before they require a police response. This helps resolve non-emergency concerns while allowing patrol officers to focus on higher-priority calls.

"Because of the levy passing, we have the (Gresham Police) NET team back," says Andrea Pickett, executive director for the My Father's House family shelter. "The team came and walked our campus, recommending places where we should add cameras, cut down foliage, put up mirrors and add lighting.

"These are things we can do in partnership with the Gresham Police Department to make our campus a safe place for our residents and our staff and our volunteers."

A focus on prevention

The Ceasefire officer will coordinate efforts to reduce gun violence among high-risk youth in our community. This includes working with other agency partners, including law enforcement and community-based organizations. Ceasefire is a data driven gun violence reduction and focused deterrence strategy implemented in partnership with the National Institute for Criminal Justice Reform.

"The work these officers do makes our city safer not just through enforcement, but through prevention and relationship building," said Police Chief Travis Gullberg.