A consultant says Bainbridge Police are understaffed, officers are underpaid.

This is the first in a series examining the findings of the “benchmarking” study on city services.

Crime doesn’t pay, at least for Bainbridge Police.

The island’s police department is among the best performing but lowest staffed – and paid – compared to the departments of comparable cities, according to a recent study.

The city’s recently completed benchmarking study, conducted by CH2M Hill consultants, shows that the Bainbridge Island Police Department is funded at about 30 percent below the average of five other comparable central Puget Sound communities.

The department’s staffing level of 1.26 full time employees per 1,000 residents is under the 1.6 average, and well below the high of 2.4, according to the study. Despite a generally higher cost of island living, the study also reports that the Bainbridge officers make about $2,000 less on average than police in other cities.

“We’re underpaid, overworked and need more bodies,” said Bainbridge Police Chief Matt Haney.

Despite the disparities in staff and pay, the department seems to be doing its duty well. The consultants commended Bainbridge police for helping to maintain the island’s low crime rate and high rate of completed cases.

The department cleared 87 percent of serious crimes reported, according to the study. None of the other five cities broke the 50 percent mark.

The benchmarking study assessed the island’s city services and those of communities with similar sizes, demographics and government structures, including Mercer Island, Mountlake Terrace, Marysville, Sammamish and Lynnwood.

The consultants, in their preliminary recommendations, suggested that the city boost the department’s staff by one general service officer, a school resources officer and a half-time support staff.

While the department is performing well with current resources, added support is necessary to maintain basic services as the island’s population grows, the consultants said.

The study’s results were generally well-received by the Bainbridge City Council. The council plans to use the study as a guide for future deliberations on 12 possible new full-time city positions, including two new traffic officers and a school resource officer that were recommended in the city administration’s preliminary 2007 budget.

The recommendations for added staff echoed the desires of the island’s police force.

“If the council supports the benchmarking study, they’d add police officers,” Haney said.

The study sparked some councilors, including Bob Scales and Bill Knobloch, to express renewed support for adding a school resource officer to the department’s payroll.

“My God, man, it’s our kids,” said Knobloch. “The more exposure to a value system early on, the better we’ll be in the long run.”

The department currently employs 22 officers and three full-time records and support staff. The study’s recommendations would put the number of full-time police employees at 29.

“The talk in the council was for a policy that shoots for average,” he said. “That’s a sore spot for me. I expect from my officers the absolute best service. But then, on the other hand, they’re compensation is based on the average. It’s like sitting up and chanting ‘we’re number four!’”

Higher pay and better benefits would help the department hire and retain quality staff, Haney said. Four officers left the department over the last year for higher-paying jobs in other law enforcement agencies in the region.

Haney also pointed to the heavy workload of the department’s support staff who are tasked with responding to calls, cataloging evidence and other administrative tasks.

“The last time we added support staff was in 1995, yet the population and our calls for service have gone up dramatically,” he said.

Bainbridge police responded to 17,000 calls for service over the last 12 months.

“That number keeps rising,” said Haney, who stressed his department is tackling higher rates of auto collisions, speeding violations, reckless driving and other traffic incidents.

Especially alarming is the growing number drivers who pass offloading school buses, swerving at high speeds past flashing red lights and children, Haney said.

Road dangers are why Haney has proposed adding two motorcycle traffic officers.

“I absolutely maintain that motorcycle traffic officers will change behavior,” he said. “It’s not a ‘might.’ They ‘will.’

Everyone will start to drive with caution.”

The island’s size and geography also makes policing a challenge, police say.

“The Port Orchard and Poulsbo (police) have something like 6 square miles vs. our 26 or 29 square miles, and miles and miles of road,” Haney said.

With an average of 2.5 officers on duty per shift, overlapping incidents around the island can stretch resources thin and delay responses. According to the study, Bainbridge police’s average response time of 6 minutes is over a minute longer than the average.

“Say there’s a call down on the south end and then an accident at the intersection of Seabold and (state Route) 305, then look at our response time, especially if it’s at rush hour. We’re doing quite good considering the size of the island,” said Deputy Police Chief Mark Duncan.

While the island’s police are staying busy, they tackle fewer violent or other serious crimes compared to other cities.

Bainbridge police investigated 141 “serious” crimes over a 12-month period compared to the average of 916 in other assessed cities.

Haney maintains that a well-staffed department with strong local support will continue the trend.

“Yes, we’re a safe community,” Haney said. “Let’s keep it a safe community.”