Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Police Budget topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Police chief presents 2025 budget citing 103,369 calls and staffing needs
Summary
Chief David Forester told the council the Department of Public Safety handled 103,369 incoming calls in 2024 and requested $23.95 million in regular salaries and $1.15 million in overtime for 2025, while outlining equipment and vehicle upgrades and plans to increase special officer staffing.
Chief David Forester presented the Department of Public Safety’s 2025 operating request and highlighted a surge in demand last year.
Chief David Forester, presenting the plan, said the department answered 103,369 calls for service in 2024, an increase of 6,937 calls over 2023, and described the personnel and budgetary implications. “Our greatest asset is our dedicated team of 228 employees,” Forester said, noting the complement includes 146 sworn officers, 24 full‑time and two part‑time communications operators, 17 crossing guards and 19 Class One special police officers. He said the department is requesting $23,950,400 for regular salaries and $1,150,000 for overtime in 2025.
Forester walked the council through line items that will be affected by rising costs, including ammunition, radio system maintenance, body‑worn camera storage expansion and bulletproof vests. He said the police general operating budget request includes training, accreditation, boat and bike equipment and radio repairs. For vehicle replacement, the department requested $428,250 for patrol vehicle turnover and noted older vehicles are repurposed where possible.
On staffing, Forester said the department currently employs 228 people and is planning to increase Class One special police officers from 19 toward a target complement of 25, requesting $345,000 in salaries and $12,000 in overtime for that line. He described the role of those officers as year‑round parking enforcement, traffic details, municipal court security and meeting security.
During the public question period, resident and commenter Mr. Finelli asked about a small discrepancy in the headcount (228 vs. an internal sum of 233); Forester said the figure may reflect a recent roster change and that he would verify the source of the difference. Forester also clarified the 103,369 figure refers to incoming calls to dispatch (includes EMS, police and other incoming contacts), not only dispatched officer responses.
The presentation ended with brief public discussion about patrol coverage and equipment upgrades, including a question about license‑plate reader coverage. Forester said the department employs plate‑reading technology on vehicles and at fixed locations but did not enumerate an exact current total during the meeting.
Next steps: the council received the presentation and opened the budget for further review; no final council appropriation vote on the police budget was recorded in this session.
