Mayor-elect Cherelle Parker has announced the team that will help ease the transition into her role as mayor as she prepares to hold the top office at City Hall.

Parker, soon to be Philadelphia’s 100th and first female mayor, laid out her action plan for the weeks ahead on Thursday at a news conference. She also announced the members of her team that will guide her on policy and personnel decisions.

Parker promised that a selection for police commissioner would be her first personnel announcement. She says they’ve already started interviewing candidates from across Philadelphia and the nation. Parker said the announcement will come before Thanksgiving.

“They not only need to have the trust of the mayor but they need to have the support of the ranking file, Parker said.”

Parker added, “I talked about someone not needing a GPS to make it to 52nd and Market if that’s where they need to go.”

She plans to “Remove every barrier to entry that could be potentially in existence to prevent, and or, discourage folks from wanting to become a part of our police department.”

People for Parker announced that Ryan Boyer with the building trades council will chair the transition team. Greg Segall, of Versa Capital Group will be vice chair. 

Boyer said that the team will focus on finding the “best and brightest” from across the city and country.

Parker emphasized her mission for Philadelphia to be a cleaner, safer city. She said she plans to fix what she calls the ‘hope deficit’ among Philadelphians.