Police and fire leaders used the budget workshop to highlight personnel and equipment needs and to describe grant-seeking efforts aimed at offsetting costs.

Police priorities and grant pursuit

Police leadership reported improved recruitment and retention over the last year and requested three replacement vehicles to retire older, maintenance-prone SUVs. The police chief asked council to permit staff to seek alternate funding where possible; he said he will pursue grant funding for license-plate readers (LPRs) and related software and that he expected the department to apply for a state grant shortly. The LPR package described to council includes five fixed readers at major entrances and one mobile trailer with cameras; staff said some neighboring agencies use compatible systems, which would allow regional information-sharing.

The chief also described non-capital items he hoped to fund from forfeiture or grant sources (radars, SWAT equipment and automated traffic-monitoring units) and emphasized that several items are force multipliers rather than routine budget additions.

Fire and EMS needs

The fire chief described requests for updated turnout/bunker gear replacements, SCBA and replacement battery packs for modern battery-powered extrication tools (noting that battery modules and chargers can be expensive). Fire staff also asked for minor facility upgrades at Station 2 (training/meeting space and HVAC/ceiling finishes) and for portable power/lighting equipment. EMS reported stable staffing and said it will hold off on adding full-time positions for now, relying on a mix of full- and part-time paramedics.

Shared resources and donations

Staff announced a pending donation of a mobile command trailer from a local industrial partner and said BASF has pledged funding to outfit the trailer; city staff described the trailer as a shared asset for public-safety incident response and major events.

Grant strategy and next steps

Police and fire leaders asked council to support grant applications for the LPR system and other equipment. The police chief indicated he would proceed with a grant application and return with details if the award is successful. Council did not take a formal vote on any of the equipment requests during the workshop but directed staff to pursue grant funding where feasible and to bring any recommended purchases forward for formal budget approval.

Ending: chiefs said they will prioritize items that improve officer safety and investigative capacity, pursue outside funding where possible, and return with detailed purchase requests and funding sources.