ROGERS -- The city's Police Department will need to grow its officer staff to keep up with calls for service, Chief Hayes Minor told the Committee of the Whole on Tuesday night.
There are 109 police officers on staff now. They work in four platoons -- two during the day and two at night. The department would like to add a fifth platoon that would work a 2 p.m. to 2 a.m. shift in the coming years, Minor said during his budget request before the committee.
The goal is to add at least 15 officers over the next three years, Minor said.
Calls for police service in the city have gone up about 3 percent a year. Minor expects there to be at least 40,000 calls for service this year.
Rogers averages 1.8 officers per 1,000 residents. The national average is 2.2 officers per 1,000 residents, said Minor, who praised the work his staff does now.
"We do a good job of managing the load and getting officers out to residents," Minor said.
Minor also requested 11 new Chevrolet Tahoes at a cost of about $47,000 each as well new undercover vehicles to replace an aging and well-known fleet.
An undercover vehicle can become a target for criminals, who will take pictures or shoot videos of a vehicle they suspect is being used by police, Minor said.
"That impairs our ability to conduct an investigation covertly," Minor said.
Minor wants to sell the current undercover fleet "of more than five" and enter into a contract with Enterprise to provide new undercover vehicles. Springdale uses a similar program with Enterprise, Minor said. Rogers police would lease the vehicles for a year and then get news ones. Officers tend to put between 11,000 and 14,000 miles a year on an undercover vehicle, Minor said. The lease with Enterprise would allow for up to 15,000 miles per year per vehicle.
Mayor Greg Hines agreed with Minor that updating the undercover vehicles is needed.
"It makes a lot of sense," Hines said. "They are the most known cars in the county, and not by the people you want to recognize them."
The committee approved Minor's proposed 2019 budget of $12.1 million along with the city's District Court budget. The Police Department's 2018 budget was a little over $11.3 million.
The City Council is expected to approve the budget in November.
NW News on 09/26/2018