Room to grow From the cover
Prosper’s general fund budget
Celina’s general fund budget
The big picture
Public safety funding
Public safety funding* General fund remainder
$60M
$60M
Prosper and Celina council members approved their respective fiscal year 2024-25 budgets in September. Both budgets saw funding increases for their fire and police departments, according to city documents. Included in Prosper’s police budget was nearly $400,000 in grants to add onto the town’s Flock Safety camera system, a network of license plate-scanning cameras that monitor streets for vehicles reported stolen, involved in a recent crime or listed in an Amber Alert. “Investing in those types of tools [is] allowing our public safety to do more with the same amount of people,” Prosper Finance Director Chris Landrum said. Prosper’s Fire Department received funding for radio replacements and membership to an online paramedic school, which allows firefighters to complete required paramedic training in Prosper and remain available to go on duty, Blasingame said. The 9-10 months of online lessons are coupled with in-person training. In Celina, the fire department saw an increase in funding for new staff and equipment, Beamis said. “Making sure that we have the personnel always readily available and then [keeping] as many resources in the city as possible is extremely important,” Beamis said. “Having that budget increase will definitely help us achieve that.” The Celina Police Department received funding for new staff as well, Celina Police Chief John Cullison said. Officers typically spend 60% of their shifts engaged on calls for service and 40% on active cases and in the community, he said. If officers are consistently spending more than 60% of their time each shift on call, then it is time to hire more staff, Cullison said.
$50M
$50M
$40M
$40M
$30M
$30M
$20M
$20M
$10M
$10M
Fiscal year $0
Fiscal year $0
2024-25 public safety funding highlights:
2024-25 public safety funding highlights:
New staff including an administrative assistant, which will free up officers for patrol
More mental health program funding for both police and fire
A study on Celina PD’s future building expansions
New dispatch supervisor
Two new school resource officers
Fire engine maintenance
New police officer safety equipment
New police and fire equipment
SOURCE: CITY OF CELINA/COMMUNITY IMPACT
*PROSPER DOES HAVE SOME NON-GENERAL FUND PUBLIC SAFETY FUNDING. SOURCE: TOWN OF PROSPER/COMMUNITY IMPACT
An Investment in Today's Texas Teachers is an Investment in Tomorrow's Workforce Stay Informed, Advocate, and Get Involved.
RaiseYourHandTexas.org
Paid by Raise Your Hand Texas
22
COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM
Powered by FlippingBook