New police chief aims to protect Bee Cave's 'Hill Country feel'

Having spent more than two decades serving the people of Boerne, Texas, Bee Cave Police Chief Gary Miller said he understands the relationship a Hill Country community has with its surroundings and wants to ensure that his new post maintains its hometown quality.

The McAllen native was officially sworn in as the city's top law enforcement officer Sept. 9 following the retirement of Police Chief Rusty Pancoast.

Prior to working in Bee Cave, Miller served as chief of police for the city of Boerne and as chief deputy in the Kendall County Sheriff's Office.

How did you get your start in law enforcement?

From a very young age I knew I wanted to pursue a career in law enforcement. It's a big advantage to know your goal early on since you can spend all of your energy working toward that goal.

I started out as a police officer with The University of Texas at Austin campus police in 1975 but found the work to be a little slow. I moved back to McAllen and eventually became captain at age 31.

In 1989 I relocated to Boerne as its chief of police. During my 22-year tenure, I saw the force grow from 11 officers to 31 officers when I retired in 2011.

As luck would have it, as Kendall County Sheriff's Chief Deputy, I visited Bee Cave to look at used police cars for sale. Retiring Police Chief Rusty Pancoast encouraged me to apply for his position.

How would you characterize the difference between Boerne and Bee Cave?

Each city is a bedroom community on the Hill Country side of a larger city—Boerne to San Antonio and Bee Cave to Austin. Both cities have small-town feels, Exemplary or Recognized school systems and are communities where residents feel safe.

Generally, both cities have gone through some of the same growth issues. First, each city has a dark-sky ordinance. Secondly, although each city has some big-box stores, residents' sentiment is that a few of these types of stores is enough.

Both cities have trouble finding employees to work because it's expensive to live in these communities. However, there's a division among each city's residents as to how to approach affordable housing.

What problem does the Bee Cave Police Department face today?

Retaining quality employees is a problem facing the Bee Cave Police Department and was an issue in Boerne as well. Younger guys look for something more exciting, more action. Internally, there's a need to try to reward officers for staying—from salary and benefits to equipment and training.

The potential for growth in a city [such as] Bee Cave means there's a potential for growth in its police department.

Describe your best day in law enforcement.

My best day was the retirement reception the Boerne Police Department sponsored for my family—the show of support, wishing us well. My wife taught school in Boerne for 15 or 16 years. Some of her former students were working as my patrol officers. It was bittersweet.

I got a lot of satisfaction seeing young officers develop and grow into professionals—having kids, living life. In an organization that size, you get to know everyone. At my retirement, there was only one person left in the department who I had not hired.

Describe your worst day in law enforcement.

My worst day occurred in McAllen. I was a sergeant on patrol, and an officer on my shift was killed by a burglary suspect.

As a department we were unprepared for the psychological impact his death had on the other officers in his shift. Five months after his death, the officer who found his colleague's body began having recurring, debilitating nightmares.

So I started an employee assistance program to help him, other officers and their families. The program is still operational today.

Do you have any concerns about adding law enforcement to the areas Bee Cave has annexed or is proposing to annex?

That's something we will have to try to keep up with. Historically, based on crime statistics, retail areas have much higher calls for police service than residential areas. A bigger increase in calls would come if the city annexes a large retail area.

Land on Hwy. 71 that could become commercial services would likely have more of an impact on police calls than an equally sized residential tract.

What do you want Bee Cave residents to know about you?

I'd love to meet more of them. This year marked the first time the Bee Cave Police Department supported National Night Out block parties. It's been hard to get people enthused about National Night Out because they are not worried about crime.

I want people to realize I'm very open. If someone has a suggestion or a concern, just give me a holler. I'm available to meet the needs [of Bee Cave].