Police Dept. History
In 1973, the City of Cedar Park was voted into existence by community members who also elected the first City Council and City Marshal---the first law enforcement officer for Cedar Park. Unsatisfied with merely a City Marshal, the City Council enacted and ordinance in July of 1973 that created the Cedar Park Police Department, and after several months, the position of City Marshal was abolished when the Council voted to turn over all law enforcement duties to a newly created police department.
Dan Hansmire, a former Shertz, Texas police officer, was hired as Cedar Park Police Chief and Frank Borgfield, a former Universal City, Texas officer, was hired to be Chief Hansmire’s one and only police officer.
Today, the Cedar Park Police Department is a vibrant and professional organization that works hard to meet the increasing demands of a growing community. The department has changed a great deal and a quick comparison on services shows just how far the department has come.
In 1973, Chief Hansmire and one other officer provided police services to just over 200 Cedar Park residents. Today, Chief Fluck's department consists of 79 officers, 16 Communications personnel, and 9 civilian support employees serving a population of just over 50,000 residents of Cedar Park and the countless visitors to our community.
In 1973, calls for police service were dispatched over a 40-channel Citizen's Band Radio, oftentimes by Chief Hansmire's wife and son. Today, the department currently operates as a partner in a multi-jurisdictional public safety digital communications network that covers all of Williamson and Travis counties and has the ability to communicate with a number of other jurisdictions at the flip of a switch, so to speak.
In 1973, the first police car was a leased green Ford family sedan with a single rotating red light on top the roof. Today, officers patrol Cedar Park streets in a variety contemporary police vehicles suited to meet a number of special law enforcement needs. Sedans, pick-ups, utility vehicles, and motorcycles are equipped with the latest law enforcement technology and emergency lighting. The officers have state-of-the-art communications equipment available to them, along with in-car computers that allow an Officer access to crucial information necessary to perform their duties.
Where officers in 1973 had to handwrite their reports or type them out on the City's only IBM Selectric typewriter, the Department’s Computer Aided Dispatch and Records Management system allows officers direct access to department data bases. Officers can utilize a number of available computers to complete their reports and digitally communicate with other law enforcement agencies. Officers have access to state, national, and police profession specific databases, which provide officers with additional resources to accomplish their work for the community.
In 1973, Chief Hansmire and his one officer were paid just under $6,000 a year, where entry-level officers today make around $40,000 a year. Cadets can earn $32,000 while in the academy, and all new officers receive a $2,000 hiring incentive in an effort to compete for qualified police candidates in an increasingly competitive job market. The nation is facing a shortage of qualified police applicants and Cedar Park works hard to hire diverse and qualified officers who recognize the honor and privilege of serving a community that supports them.
In 1973, if you were given a ticket and fined for speeding in Cedar Park, a violator would pay $5.00, plus $2.00 per mile over the speed limit, and a $2.00 state fee. Today, if you were charged and found guilty of speeding in Cedar Park, you would likely pay a fine of $97, plus $5 per mile over the speed limit.
It’s hard to believe, but in 1973 the very first police station was a 10x20 square foot metal storage building with gold adhesive letters on the window indicating that it was the police department. The shed hosted a desk, a couple of chairs, a phone, and a file cabinet for use by both the Police Department and Municipal Court. Today, the Police and Municipal Court buildings are located at 911 Quest Parkway and are housed in separate buildings with a combined 40,500 square feet of working space. Although the Police Department currently enjoys enough room to house the personnel and services it offers today, the extra space is quickly vanishing. As a result, voters approved a $4.1-million bond for the future expansion of the police facility in the near future.
There are many services that the Police Department offers today that weren’t even dreamed of in 1973. The Cedar Park Police Department has a four Patrol Operations Platoons, a Criminal Investigations Division, a Motorcycle Traffic Enforcement Division, a Victim Services Coordinator, a Warrant Division, K-9 Officers, a Community Services Division, an Animal Control Division, a Communications Division, a Professional Standards Division, a Records Division, a Special Reponses Team, a Crisis Negotiations Team, School Resource Officers, and a Honor Guard that make-up the full-service law enforcement agency providing services to Cedar Park today.
Although the Cedar Park Police Department of 1973 and the department today are largely different in facilities, equipment, technology, and numbers of personnel, little has changed in the duty that the officers ultimately perform. Officers in 1973 and 2008, deal with many of the same issues.
In 1973, the average number of calls per day was 6, in 2009 Cedar Park officers answer 35,799 calls for police service, the highest recorded number in its history, which averaged out to roughly 95 calls per day. However, the nature of the calls is only slightly different from those dealt with in 1973.
Former Chief Hansmire was faced with, collisions, shootings, thefts, assaults, family violence, and other quality of life issues, just like the Officers today. Although thirty-five-plus years has changed the face of the Cedar Park Police Department, Officers still patrol your neighborhoods in the late hours of the night, intercede in disputes over a variety of issues, solve neighborhood problems, and continue to fight crime in your community on a day-to-day basis. Cedar Park officers face the challenges presenting by a growing and ever-changing community---with few signs that it will slow in the coming years. Although the Department will seek to balance the number of personnel and resources with the demands of growth, the Department will strive to maintain the ideal that quality does not always lie in numbers, but the individual service provided by each officer.