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Atwater police, fire give staffing and operations updates; committee presses for staffing numbers and outreach details
Summary
Police reported February activity totals and noted staffing questions; Fire Department described calls, promotions and arrival timetable for a Type 6 apparatus and outlined planned ADA and station repairs tied to Measure B budgeting.
Atwater’s oversight committee received routine police and fire reports and probed staffing and resource questions tied to Measure B funding.
Police Sergeant Dayton Snyder reported February 2025 operational statistics, saying the department handled about 3,426 total incidents in the month, including 177 traffic stops, 143 citations, 283 officer reports and 70 arrests. Sergeant Snyder also announced the imminent swearing-in of Officer Reyes and described a trainee nearing completion of the field-training program.
Committee members asked why sworn staffing was shown dropping from 28 to 26 officers in the current budget and whether a position assigned to unhoused outreach had been refilled. Sergeant Snyder and City Manager Chris said two corporal positions were left vacant in the budget process to help close a fiscal gap but that city staff aim to maintain staffing levels; Chris said staff will follow up with additional details.
Assistant Fire Chief Mark Pimentel told the committee that Stations 40/41 ran 496 calls and Station 42 ran 297 calls for a total of 793 calls since the start of 2025; he announced internal promotions, an ongoing truck academy, and said the Type 6 apparatus should arrive in roughly three to four months and be outfitted for service. Pimentel also outlined planned station improvements — including ADA bathroom work and gate repair — and said CAL FIRE contract staffing costs for the referenced quarters total roughly $2.003 million (about $1.1 million and $1.136 million for the two quarters cited).
Staff said they would provide clearer budget breakdowns linking account numbers to specific descriptions (for example, to make it obvious which professional-services line items correspond to the CAL FIRE agreement), and committee members asked that the city post a follow-up report and share it with the committee ahead of the next meeting.
The committee had no formal policy vote related to staffing or equipment at the meeting but asked staff to deliver documentation and follow-up responses.
