State Partners With Police Department To Provide Anoka-Ramsey Community College Security

A decades-long agreement between the state of Minnesota and the city of Coon Rapids for security at Anoka-Ramsey Community College will continue.

The Coon Rapids City Council July 5 renewed its agreement with the state through which the Coon Rapids Police Department provides evening security and other services at the college using police reserve officers.

The contract went into effect July 1 and runs through June 30, 2024. The cost to the state is a not-to-exceed amount of $37,000.

Under the contract, one uniformed police reserve officer in a squad car is on duty at the college Monday through Thursday from 6:30-10.30 p.m. when students are taking classes, except for faculty days and holidays.

Besides walking or driving students, faculty and staff to and from their vehicles on campus grounds, the officer patrols parking lots, campus grounds, sidewalks and inside campus buildings, as well as providing nightly inspections of outside lighting and reporting outages, parking enforcement and reporting other safety issues like slippery sidewalks, the contract states.

Capt. Bill Steiner, acting police chief, noted that there has never been a major incident.

“Most people are compliant,” Steiner said.

Police reserve officers sign up to work the shifts at the college and most of those are younger who are paid less based on seniority than longer-term members.

As a result, the new contract amount is unchanged after several years of cost-of-living increases, Steiner said.

The police reserve unit is a long-standing part of the police department and has more than 20 officers.

They perform many non-enforcement functions such working 4th of July events, parades, sporting events, carnivals and fairs as well as provide assistance with emergency situations and natural disasters in the community and around the state, the police department website states.

To join, a person must be at least 18 years old, a US citizen, possess a valid Minnesota driver’s license with a good driving record, earned a high school diploma or equivalency certificate, be in good physical condition, submit to criminal history and background check and pass an oral examination by a review board.

Reserve officers must serve a probationary period, attend a minimum of seven out of 10 monthly meetings on the second Sunday of the month and work one shift per month, not including the monthly meetings.

In addition, they have to successfully complete CPR/first aid certification and annual refresher classes, response to resistance training and annual refresher classes, field training program and the Reserve Academy, according to the police department website.

SOURCE: Hometown Source