By general consent during its Aug. 17 meeting, Bellaire City Council allowed the department to submit a grant application to the Bellaire Police and Fire Foundation for $20,000 to help cover the cost of the study. The remaining $27,794 to pay for the study will be funded by the police department through special revenue and operation accounts, according to an agenda report.
The study will review the department’s operations and management, which includes nearly all elements of the department, such as accountability, staffing, policy, crime control, citizen engagement, and resource and fleet management, Police Chief Byron Holloway said.
“I believe the Bellaire Police Department is one of the finest police organizations in the country, but I do believe that any organization always has room for improvement,” Holloway said.
The study comes as Holloway looks to retire from his position by summer 2021, the police chief told council, and it would serve to point to areas of improvement within the department for his planned replacement, Assistant Chief Onesimo Lopez. In addition, the study would be conducted during a time in the United States when police reform is a topic of national interest, Holloway said.
“I do believe we owe it to our community to provide them with an accurate account of their police department and its operations and to make any needed changes as appropriate,” Holloway said.
Emergency Services Consulting International was the firm selected out of three proposals the city received. The decision to choose the firm was shaped with input from the Bellaire Police Department Citizen Training Advisory Board, which reviewed the bids.
Once an agreement is executed by the interim city manager, the independent study would take 90 to 180 days to complete.
