2008 Woodie Awards
With Annapolis bill's failure, city left to pick up the pieces in addressing safety
Megan Eckstein
Issue date: 4/15/08 Section: News
Plans to beef up College Park's public safety budget with state funds have stumbled in the wake of a lagging economy and Annapolis politics.
The College Park City Council announced last week that it will raise local taxes to hire more police officers to patrol the city as hope fades in Annapolis for a bill that would have provided the money.
That means the city will only be able to afford the minimum number of new officers it was looking to hire. And new taxes could be passed along to students eventually in higher rents.
"I think everyone understands there's a serious crime problem," said Sen. Jim Rosapepe (D-Anne Arundel and Prince George's), who represents College Park. "But the question was, why should the state provide extra money for only College Park?"
State lawmakers allowed the bill, which would have granted the city about $500,000 for improving police coverage, to die in the House Appropriations Committee in March, citing the deteriorating economic outlook and the unfairness of aiding this university but not others, Rosapepe said.
Still, District 2 Councilman Bob Catlin said the tax hike will be substantial enough to make significant safety improvements. The council proposed raising taxes by almost 8 percent to come up with the needed half-million dollars, a sum that will allow the city to hire four new county officers to patrol College Park full time with some funds left over for technology improvements.
The city was told it might get about half the money it requested from the state, Catlin said, which it would have combined with a tax increase to pay for six new officers.
Catlin conceded residents won't be happy about the increased taxes, but he said the strides that the city's contract officers have made in improving College Park security have proven that more officers will have an impact.
The city already contracts with about 20 Prince George's County police officers, who patrol the city a total of about 200 hours a week - the equivalent of four full-time officers, Catlin said. Those officers are only in College Park part-time, though.
The College Park City Council announced last week that it will raise local taxes to hire more police officers to patrol the city as hope fades in Annapolis for a bill that would have provided the money.
That means the city will only be able to afford the minimum number of new officers it was looking to hire. And new taxes could be passed along to students eventually in higher rents.
"I think everyone understands there's a serious crime problem," said Sen. Jim Rosapepe (D-Anne Arundel and Prince George's), who represents College Park. "But the question was, why should the state provide extra money for only College Park?"
State lawmakers allowed the bill, which would have granted the city about $500,000 for improving police coverage, to die in the House Appropriations Committee in March, citing the deteriorating economic outlook and the unfairness of aiding this university but not others, Rosapepe said.
Still, District 2 Councilman Bob Catlin said the tax hike will be substantial enough to make significant safety improvements. The council proposed raising taxes by almost 8 percent to come up with the needed half-million dollars, a sum that will allow the city to hire four new county officers to patrol College Park full time with some funds left over for technology improvements.
The city was told it might get about half the money it requested from the state, Catlin said, which it would have combined with a tax increase to pay for six new officers.
Catlin conceded residents won't be happy about the increased taxes, but he said the strides that the city's contract officers have made in improving College Park security have proven that more officers will have an impact.
The city already contracts with about 20 Prince George's County police officers, who patrol the city a total of about 200 hours a week - the equivalent of four full-time officers, Catlin said. Those officers are only in College Park part-time, though.
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