Fort Walton Beach Council agenda — 06-14-11 regular — reading text

assigned to handle calls in the unincorporated area of Page 8 Paek Pg. 154  F143. Destin. As per the contract, the Sheriff provides take -home vehicles for the contract deputies and sport utility vehicles ( SUVs) and all terrain vehicles (ATVs) for use on the beach. Although not described in the current contract, the city from time to time has agreed to reimburse the OCSO for the cost of vehicle replacement as needed for the deputies i assigned to the city. Vehicles are properly outfitted for patrol and investigative functions. Also, the OCSO is in the process of outfitting all cars with mobile data computers for automated queries for wanted persons, licence verifications and motor vehicle registration information. ESTABLISHING A DESTIN CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT In interviews with Police Executive Research Forum ( PERF) staff, city officials indicated concern about the rising cost of the contract for police services. The increase for the current contract ($ 975, 338) from the previous one ($ 785, 722) represents a 24. 5% increase. Part of this increase is accounted for by two beach patrol officers added to the latest contract. Some other cost increases over recent years are attributable not only to salary and operational cost increases. Additional costs, outside the contract, include the cost of vehicle replacement. Many of the city officials interviewed by PERF expressed the belief that the city could establish its own police department with lower operating costs than expended on the contract with the OCSO. This view largely stems from their understanding that other 1 comparable cities, with their own police departments, are spending less for law enforcement than Destin. A second observation was that if Destin had a police department, residents of the unincorporated area would be more supportive of annexation. The third recurring remark has to do with the amount of control city officials feel they should have over the operations of their police. Some felt there was a need to Page 9 Packet Pg. 155 .  F14 3..1 have greater direct control over traffic enforcement and beach patrol issues. For example, some officials indicated that sometimes they see too many deputies on the beach while traffic seems unregulated. Several officials reported times when they only see two deputies on duty in the city. Overall, they would like to see the city have a greater role in establishing police priorities. Virtually none of the officials reported any dissatisfaction with the level or quality of service provided by the deputies assigned under the Destin contract. Most reported being especially pleased with the deputies assigned, noting their seniority, experience and exceptional demeanor. Destin is relatively free of serious crime. However, the growth it has experienced and its seasonal increase of about 18, 000 people, substantiate the need for a police adONvC u_ presence that adequately addresses city beat patrol, traffic enforcement, crash w investigation, and beach patrol. The contract calls for 13 patrol deputies at 40 hours per y week ( 13 deputies X 40 hours X 52 weeks = 27, 040 hours). If they took no leave time, this equates to three beat deputies around -the -clock ( three deputies X 24 hours X 365 Mn 26, 280 hours), plus 760 hours presumably expended on overlap, activities that extend beyond the workday, and beach patrol. ( Absences due to illness, injury, vacations and other leave are not part of these estimates but are included later in this report.) According to the OCSO the city is the recipient of services and benefits beyond those stipulated In the contract. When contract deputies are consumed by calls, investigations or otherwise unavailable, and when peak season demands exceed deputy availability, other county deputies are available for backfll. Beach patrols, often two to four deputies, are reportedly provided outside of the contract requirements - without additional cost. City officials believe the county has an obligation to provide a level of police patrol coverage in addition to the positions funded by the city contract. They argue that if the city had not incorporated, the OCSO would be patrolling the area at an acceptable, Page 10 Padret Pg. 156.  14. 3. e minimum staffing level. But since the city contracts for officers, that level of coverage is completely withdrawn and replaced only with contract deputies. Inasmuch as a portion of city property and other taxes support the county, they would like to see some additional county funded police resources directed to the city. The officials interviewed generally agreed that if it were demonstrated that the cost of Destin having its own police department were greater than the current contract cost, their only real desire would be for the city to have greater input and/ or better communication with the manager(s) of the Destin contract deputies. Financial considerations aside, most agreed the remaining issues could be resolved if the OCSO designated a single supervisor or manager to oversee policing in Destin. This supervisor /manager would need to be responsive to the city manager on matters dealing with policing the city, while organizationally responsible to the Sheriff's chain of command. In other jurisdictions where similar arrangements are in place, the supervisor /manager works to address the concerns of the city, but is not a subordinate of - or evaluated by - the city manager. Rather, if the city manager feels the city' s needs are not being met because of the supervisor /manager, his replacement can be requested. In the following sections, PERF lays out the cost and implementation steps required to provide 24 -hour law enforcement services for the city of Destin. As components of determining the expenses, calculations were made for both the initial start- up costs for the department as well as an initial annual budget. The cost estimations made certain assumptions: 1. The Destin Police Department ( DPD) would utilize three separate police beats. 2. Each beat would have an assigned officer 24 hours per day, seven days per week.` 6 Three, 24 hour beats are needed especially if Destin were to add area to the city such as Kelly Plantation. Page 11 Packet'Ag 757  14. 3.e, 3. The Destin Police Department would utilize a take -home vehicle program 4. The city has paid for several patrol vehicles which are currently provided to the OCS. The city should explore whether this equipment could be converted to the use of a city police department. 5. The Destin Police Department would hire both experienced and inexperienced police officers. The hiring process would require a range of police salaries reflecting the accumulated knowledge, skills and abilities of the veteran staff, 6. The initial report prepared for the Destin City Council,' contained salary and other personnel information from comparable West Florida police departments, PERF utilized this data to prepare salary and benefit tables. RESOURCE ALLOCATION Law enforcement managers strive to utilize their available resources efficiently and productively in providing necessary services to their community. The most essential, and costly, resources are the sworn and civilian employees of the agency. Therefore, effectively matching personnel resources to workload demands is a critical component for efficient and effective delivery of police services to the members of the Destin community. Number of Sworn Staff The first step in the allocation of personnel is to determine the number of officers needed to staff the patrol function, Key elements that are frequently used to help determine the appropriate number of sworn officers for a law enforcement agency include the current and forecasted population of the community, the number of patrol Public Safety Element - Preliminary Analysis Report,° Hartman and Associates, December, 2001 Page 12 Padtet Pg. 156  14.3. e areas that the jurisdiction wants covered, the quickness of response that the community expects from the police ( the quicker the response desired, the more officers needed), the average number of officers that would be expected to be on patrol at any given time 1 taking into account absences due to vacation, illness, and other leave, the amount of work that needs to be performed, and the type of services that the community wants from its police department. Assessing Staff Numbers through Community Population A commonly used, shortcut, method for assessing the number of officers required for a community, is to utilize an " officer per thousand population" ratio. For Destin, which has a population of nearly 11, 200 residents, a ratio can be determined using a variety of sources. For example, the U. S. Department of Justice has published materials' which describe the rate of officers per 1, 000 inhabitants. I Chart 1 Source Rate per 1, 000 Number of officers for Population DPD based on rate National Average 2. 4 27 US Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics National Average ( Cities under 10, 000) 31 35 US Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics Cities over 10, 000) 1. 8 20 US Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics I Cities under 10, 000) 3. 5 39 US Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics Most Frequent Rate - Percentage