CINCINNATI — Questions from mass fights between teenagers, misbehavior, jaywalking and more took center stage at a joint meeting of Cincinnati city officials and Cincinnati Public Schools leaders Thursday evening.

These issues pose a thorn in the side of people who use transit hubs like those at Government Square and Oakley, as students leave classes and cross the city in large groups.

Cincinnati Police Chief Teresa Theetge hasn’t found a solution to the problem.

“There has to be a solution to this problem. Police can’t be on the front lines every day,” Theetge said.

The chief said his department spent $416,000 in overtime just to patrol area transit centers during those times. And she said the problem hasn’t gotten better.

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“There’s no responsible adult making sure they’re anywhere other than where these groups are misbehaving,” Theetge said. “I think that’s part of the problem. No one is policing them properly, so the police end up doing it.”

A group of volunteers who tried to be adults who watch over students at transit centers spoke at Thursday’s joint meeting.

Iris Roley has largely been direct volunteers on Government Square since February. She said the volunteers were there as much to hold police accountable and prevent student arrests as they were to stop children from misbehaving.

“You can’t leave the police and the kids to fend for themselves,” Roley said.

Roley said that although volunteers have visited transit hubs other than Government Square downtown, she would like to see the program grow.

“We want to encourage people in the neighborhood to come to these transit centers and work with these students,” she said.

Vice Mayor Jan-Michelle Lemon Kearney led Thursday’s joint meeting and highlighted council’s allocation of $100,000 to pay volunteers and $50,000 to feed youth in transit centers as support already provided .

She said additional funds could be allocated if necessary.

“Let’s see what’s needed,” Kearney said. “I think that’s the key.”

Concerns over student fighting, jaywalking continue at Cincinnati transit centers

Emergency Communications Center Director Bill Vedra said during the joint meeting that they will soon recruit a 12-person team of community responders who are expected to be deployed to transit centers to support police and volunteers by the end of the year.

He said the first group of recruits began training earlier this week.

“Monday through Friday, we intend to deploy these people to resolve the issues,” Vedra said.

Theetge said solutions, whatever they may be, must come quickly.

“Unfortunately, police now need rapid, real-time, short-term solutions,” she said.

As for long-term solutions, the vice mayor said the school district’s proposal restructuring plan of approximately $200 million could eliminate much of the need for public transportation across the city.

Roley said the solution to youth violence needs to be much more comprehensive, including building affordable housing and programs to help people escape poverty.

“We should collectively try everything,” Theetge said.

Interim CPS Superintendent Shauna Murphy declined further comment after Thursday’s meeting.

The district instead released a statement: