CHAMPAIGN -- A Champaign City Council member is trying to get some traction toward establishing a citizen's review board to mediate police complaints.

District 1 representative Will Kyles had expressed interest in exploring the creation of the board before and publicly announced his desire during Tuesday night's city council meeting.

"A citizen review board would allow the necessary dialogue to go forth and start these difficult conversations," Kyles said.

The council has discussed creating the board before. The last time it came up formally was in 2007, when the council voted 5-4 to defeat the proposal. At the time, opponents said it would add an ineffective layer of review to an already effective process, for which the police chief makes a decision.

But the city council has undergone changes since 2007: Most notably, Mayor Don Gerard has replaced then-Mayor Jerry Schweighart, a retired police officer and fierce opponent of a citizen review board.

No council members offered comment in addition to Kyles' on Tuesday, but when Kyles brought attention to the issue during a council goal-setting meeting last week, a number of representatives seemed willing to further explore the proposal.

On Tuesday, Kyles said city officials can do little under the current system when citizens bring alleged police misconduct to the public comment period of formal meetings.

"I think the structure of our meetings really doesn't allow us to deal with the issue and leaves the issue unsettled," Kyles said.

He said he realizes there are imperfections with a review board, too, and suggested the police chief be a member of such a board. He also suggested that, if the council were to discuss the proposal, that members consider a sunset clause to reevaluate the effectiveness of the board.

"I believe that if we set this group up for success, then it will be successful," Kyles said.