Everett to put more police on the street

The Everett City Council agreed Wednesday morning to add 15 new police officers while approving the city’s $436 million budget for next year.

Everett Police Chief Jim Scharf asked for new officers and three civilian employees at the last minute, just before the council considered the budget.

He also asked for $212,000 for red-light and crime-prevention cameras.

“The investment will result in an increased ability to address traffic-related concerns, improve quality of police services and reduce crime-related nuisances,” Scharf said.

The new officers will swell the ranks of the city’s sworn police force from 181 to 196 – the first staffing increase since 2000.

The council voted unanimously to add the positions.

Counting open positions created by retirements and resignations, the department has been down to as few as 153 commissioned officers.

While staffing has stayed the same, Everett’s population, which now stands at 101,100, has risen by more than 5 percent in the past five years.

That has resulted in a steady increase in calls for service and police reports.

Everett police officials last year suspended an anti-crime team and a downtown bicycle patrol unit, putting officers on regular patrol.

The bike patrol was reactivated in late October, and the anti-crime team, which frees some officers from responding to routine 911 calls, is expected to come back early next year.

Still, Scharf said more officers are needed to keep pace with demand and he will create a second anti-crime team with the officers added Wednesday.

Recruiting, screening and training new officers will take an estimated 12 to 18 months.

“Don’t expect a real quick fix,” said City Councilman Arlan Hatloe, who sits on the budget and public safety sub-committees.

To bridge the gap, Scharf said the department will allocate overtime to current officers.

Everett would join Lynnwood as the only two cities in the county to have cameras that monitor intersections and photograph the cars of people who run red lights. Lynnwood recently unveiled plans to install cameras at six intersections in the spring. The cities plan to issue traffic tickets based on what the cameras see.

For three consecutive years, property crimes have been on the rise in Everett, up by 25 percent in the past decade.

Much of that is directly related to people stealing to feed methamphetamine addiction, Scharf said.

He said abuse of the cheap, highly addictive and destructive drug has reached an “epidemic” level in Snohomish County.

Wednesday’s 11th-hour request for reinforcements followed a two-month-long internal evaluation of the department’s operations.

Mayor Ray Stephanson asked for the assessment while crafting the city’s 2007 budget, saying the findings would likely bring additional resources for police.

The mayor in his original budget proposal set aside $2 million to pay for added public safety costs, but he didn’t earmark the money until the police chief finished his report.

Scharf originally asked for $23 million for police operations in 2007. Wednesday’s addition of $1.8 million will increase his total budget to $24.8 million.

His requests also will increase spending in other city departments. On Wednesday, the council also approved an extra attorney position in the legal department and a code compliance officer in the planning department to assist police.

The net result will be more than $6 million in additional spending on public safety during the next three years.

Highlights of the added police resources approved by council Wednesday include: