Forbes named new Lee’s Summit police chief

Lee’s Summit’s new police chief, W. Travis Forbes, will bring 22 years of experience, most of it with the Independence Police Department, to the job when he starts Sept. 2.

He replaces Joe Piccinini, who resigned in January.

“As our city continues to grow both in population and commercial activity, it is important to have a leader familiar with a larger city and organization,” Stephen Arbo, Lee’s Summit city manager, announced in a written statement.

While working in Independence, Forbes often represented the police department during union contract negotiations and city council meetings. He wrote the department’s five-year plan and supervised the upgrade of a multi-jurisdictional radio system.

Forbes earned a graduate degree in public administration from the University of Nebraska at Omaha and a bachelor’s degree from Park University.

Brian Burnes, bburnes@kcstar.com

This story was originally published July 16, 2014 at 5:43 PM with the headline "Forbes named new Lee’s Summit police chief."