Post Falls police seek funding to add officers

If Post Falls Police Chief Cliff Hayes has his way, there will be a few more officers on the streets in 2007.

With the population boom of Post Falls showing no signs of waning, officials are realizing that law enforcement in the River City needs more help dealing with the growing number of service calls.

Calling it a “fairly easy” budget year, city finance director Shelly Enderud said she is confident three new officers will be on patrol after city leaders approve next year’s budget.

The Post Falls Police Department asked for $313,000 for three new officers and an additional $66,000 for patrol cars. The spending requests will be discussed further in July when department heads gather to finish a proposal to the City Council.

In finance, Enderud said more than $1 million in personnel requests have come into her office for the fiscal year 2007 and 2008 budget years. Not all will be approved, however.

According to the budget proposal from Hayes, the department believes new officers can be funded from forgone taxes and an increase in Rathdrum 911 fees. Post Falls dispatch handles Rathdrum calls, which account for 22 percent of all calls.

“The need (for new officers) is the result of the growth of the community,” Hayes said.

Calls increased by more than 1,000 last year, to 21,680. A larger increase is expected this year.

If new officers are approved, Hayes said, the department would have a little less than two officers for every 1,000 residents. Now there are about 1.4 officers per 1,000 Post Falls residents. Before population began to explode in the 1990s, there were 2.4 officers for every 1,000 people.

In the afternoons, even the chief is out on duty responding to calls, he said. “We’re all handling calls because they’re just rolling in.”

Because they’re rolling in, police are not always able to attend to every pressing crime, Hayes said. While some police departments send out “cold call” staff members to write reports on petty crimes or thefts, leaving officers to tend to major crimes, the Post Falls department still tries to have an officer respond to each call, he said.

Without trying to step on the toes of other departments, Hayes offered what he called one of his favorite sayings during budget times: “Streets without potholes and beautiful parks are of no value if they aren’t safe.”

Mayor Clay Larkin believes additional officers will be approved, although he could not confirm whether it will be three as requested.

“Public safety is paramount,” Larkin said. “I’m pretty comfortable in saying that some of them will be funded, but I’m not going to nail down three. Like any budget, there are far more requests than you have money for. But we’ll do the best we can.”

Larkin said the city struggles with maintaining a small-town environment despite the increasing population.

“As we’re growing, the potential is there for expanded crime,” he said, “but we have a very good Police Department. We’re proud of them. I think they can handle the situation.”