Overland Park will bolster its Police and Fire departments and increase security at the Municipal Court under a 2006 spending plan approved Monday night.
The City Council unanimously approved next years $225.2 million budget, which calls for adding nine police officers, nine firefighters and two security officers at the Municipal Court.
The city will also spend money to expand the Tomahawk Ridge Community Center off of 119th Street and add features at the Deanna Rose Farmstead, such as an area to bottle-feed goats.
The new budget doesnt raise property taxes, but it also does not reduce the tax rate to make up for reappraisal. As a result, homeowners whose property values increase will see a corresponding rise in their tax bill.
By not rolling back the tax rate, Overland Park stands to collect $400,000 that it would not have otherwise received next year.
The budget funds 26 new positions, bringing to 875 the number of full-time positions at City Hall. The budget includes money for pay raises averaging 3.8 percent.
The new positions for the Fire Department are intended to improve firefighting abilities in the citys southern half, where new development is occurring.
Three positions will be added at Station No. 3, at 13801 Switzer Road, and three will be added to Station No. 5 at 15935 Metcalf Ave. The new positions ensure that each station meets national staffing standards.
Adding positions doesnt necessarily improve response times as much as it hastens firefighting efforts once crews are at the scene, Overland Park Fire Chief Bryan Dehner said. Dehner said firefighters would ignore the standard if a rescue were needed.
The addition of nine officers to the Police Department continues an effort that began in 2004 to increase the ratio of officers to 1.6 per 1,000 residents. In 2004, the ratio was at 1.3 and now stands at 1.4 officers per 1,000 residents.
Police Chief John Douglass called for adding 14 police officers a year from 2004 to 2010. The goal was to address a rise in crime that was expected to accompany the increase in the 16- to 22-year-old age group.
The city added 14 positions in 2004 with the help of a property tax increase. A federal grant helped pay for 14 more officers this year.
Douglass recommended hiring fewer employees this year because he hadnt seen the increase in crime he expected. While its not the last increase were going to ask for, it keeps us on track with where we believe we should be, Douglass said.
Amount: $225.2 million
Taxes: Property tax rate stays the same. Theres no rollback to offset increases in property values.
New full-time personnel: Nine positions added to Police Department, nine added to Fire Department, two security officers to courthouse, one community center manager, superintendent at Deanna Rose Farmstead and additional traffic engineer.
Other expenses: $3 million for street maintenance, $131,000 for additional fire gear.
Distributed by the Associated Press
