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Philomath police plan bigger social-media presence and pursue permanent radar signs to show traffic enforcement
Summary
At a June 10, 2025 Philomath Police Committee meeting, police described plans to expand social-media posts and community outreach, urged residents to log traffic/code complaints through the city portal, and outlined steps to seek grant funding and ODOT approval for permanent radar speed signs (estimated ~$25,000).
Philomath’s police committee on June 10 heard department officials say they will expand the force’s social-media outreach and pursue permanent radar speed signs to improve public awareness of traffic enforcement.
Chief Gursky told the committee that the department has tried to keep posts positive and community-focused — announcing events such as trunk-or-treat and the bike rodeo — and that staff plan to post at least weekly. "We had about a 144 traffic stops during the month of May, and that resulted in about 60 or 62 citations," Gursky said, citing May enforcement figures as evidence the department is active even when residents do not see officers in their immediate neighborhood.
Why it matters: Residents have repeatedly said they cannot see police activity and worry speeding goes unchecked. Committee members and staff discussed two complementary responses: publish both monthly enforcement summaries and more localized anecdotal posts (time and general location) so people know stops happened in their area, and improve the city’s complaint intake so staff can triage and respond.
Staff demonstrated the city website and said the police page links to a "code enforcement request" form; the committee agreed to recode the portal or add a clear traffic/nonemergency-reporting option so residents can log concerns with time, location and contact information. Staff also gave the department’s nonemergency phone number as 5019296911 and explained the phone tree for in-progress crimes and office contacts.
On hardware and enforcement: the department reviewed use of portable radar signs for data collection and deterrence on side streets and neighborhood approaches. The committee discussed previous temporary sign placement and new Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) requirements that permanent signs be mounted on engineered posts. Gursky said staff intend to apply for grant funding to install permanent flashing speed or radar signs at the town entrances; he estimated the project cost at about $25,000 and said placement on state highways will require ODOT approval and, if installed, city maintenance.
Committee members also discussed crosswalks, pavement markings and other visual traffic-calming measures for stretches of Main Street and Applegate (examples mentioned included 7th, 9th and 13th streets). Staff said additional marked crosswalks and pavement ‘‘25’’ markings are possible but likely require both funding and an agreement to maintain striping.
Other items discussed included short-term strategies to address obstruction by large vehicles on side streets and plans for high-visibility patrols during the upcoming Frolic event; staff said regional partners and Benton County deputies typically participate in overtime patrols emphasizing impaired-driving enforcement.
The committee approved the minutes from the April 8, 2024 meeting by voice vote early in the session. The group agreed the next meeting will be in September (members identified September 10, 2025 as acceptable) and adjourned.
What’s next: Staff said they will update the complaint portal to include a traffic/nonemergency option, continue improving the department’s social-media posts to show enforcement occurrence, and pursue grant applications and ODOT coordination for permanent radar sign installation.
