CC WS PACKET 09242024 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

DECISION TIMELINE Another aspect of the process has been City of Falcon Heights staff working to secure police services starting January 1, 2025 up until the St. Anthony Police Department would be adequately staffed to begin services. This was ideally to be January 1, 2026, or thereafter based on staffing levels. City of Falcon Heights staff explored temporary options with neighboring agencies on temporary services with no success and made a request to the Ramsey County Sherrif’s Office (RCSO) to extend services through 2025. The RCSO declined and offered no more then two extra months of coverage, through February 28, 2025. As a result, this has shorted the timeline available for the Cities of Saint Anthony Village and Falcon Heights to make a decision on entering into a renewed partnership. A decision should be made by the Saint Anthony Village City Council on October 22, 2024. This is the rationale behind the Appendix A added to the draft contract that references adding service level over time beginning on March 1, 2025. This also impacts the approach for adding additional officer and staff to support the City of Falcon Heights, and the financial support needed to do so without impacting the city of Saint Anthony Village tax levy, which is reflected in the staffing section below. STAFFING PLAN The department analyzed call data and identified the following additional personnel to support expansion: Patrol Officers Additional patrol officers same as previous contract 4 Swing Shift Patrol Additional officers during high call volume time 2 Investigator Investigative capacity to adequately address call type needs 1 Community Engagement Officer Sworn officer to coordinate community engagement for all cities 1 Administrative Support Additional administrative capacity similar to previous contract 1 Total additional personnel needed 9 CURRENT STATUS On July 1, 2024, the authorized sworn officer strength of the Police Department increased to 22. The current staffing level is at 19, and there is one candidate in the background process and 1 additional interview scheduled at this time. In order to increase the applicant pool and ability to hire qualified police officers, the Police Department proposes the following approaches: EXPANSION OF THE CADET PROGRAM There has been some increased interest in the Cadet program, which has a current authorized strength of two (2). The police department has two cadets, who will complete their college education and the Skills program in 2025. Many police departments are finding most success in a long-term solution, in which potential new officers are identified while still completing their college degrees. The department would pay for part of their education, while also employing them as a Cadet on a part-time basis. Once their education is complete, they would be hired as a full time police officer. Staff is proposing that this authorized strength be increased to six (6), which will increase our ability to promote more cadet candidates to the police officer position when they have finished their required college education. An evaluation of hourly compensation and incentives should also be conducted to ensure that St. Anthony is consistent with industry standards. HIRING BONUS Staff proposes offering a one-time hiring bonus for entry level officers and hiring bonus for lateral level officers. Half of the bonus would be paid upon successful completion of the field training program and