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Oskaloosa approves one-year emergency police services agreement with University Park
Summary
The Oskaloosa City Council approved a one-year 28E agreement for the Oskaloosa Police Department to provide emergency-only policing to University Park beginning July 1, 2025, after council members raised staffing and cost concerns and agreed to evaluate the arrangement after a year.
The Oskaloosa City Council voted to approve a one-year 28E agreement under which the Oskaloosa Police Department will provide emergency-only law enforcement services to the City of University Park from July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026.
Council members said they were willing to try a short-term arrangement while noting staffing limitations in Oskaloosa that could affect response capacity. The agreement specifies that Oskaloosa will respond to emergency calls in the service area but will not perform routine patrols there.
The council discussed staffing levels for the Oskaloosa Police Department during the debate. Council members and staff said the department is short several officers (described in the meeting as three positions short of full staffing on a 16-officer baseline) and that the July 1 start date would allow time to recruit additional personnel. Council members also said they expect to review actual call counts, workloads, and costs after the year to determine whether to continue or change the arrangement.
Representatives of University Park addressed the council by video. Kevin Hladic, identified in the meeting as a University Park council member, confirmed that the agreement would not include routine animal control complaints handled by the Stevens Memorial Animal Shelter; the 28E was limited to emergency police responses and calls for service defined as emergency in the agreement.
The resolution passed on a roll-call vote indicated in the meeting record (majority yes; one council member voted no). Council members said the county’s prior pricing for similar services had been substantially higher, and the one-year term was chosen in part to allow a closer cost and operational review after implementation.
The council instructed staff to monitor call volume and costs during the contract year and return to the council with an evaluation after 12 months.
Ending: If costs rise or the police department’s staffing situation changes materially, the council said it would revisit the arrangement at or before the end of the one-year term.
