Wausau Police Department. Image courtesy: WAOW TV
WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) — After much debate and public comment the Wausau City Council has approved the hiring of two additional police officers to allow for the creation of a specialized unit to deal with issues surrounding homelessness, particularly near the downtown area.
“We serve the entire community. That includes [the homeless] population,” said Chief Matthew Barnes. “We also hold the entire community accountable for their behavior. We don’t ask people what was on their W2 [last year] before we determine what level of enforcement to take. If we have our way, we get everyone we deal with into a better place.”
Barnes says the two-officer unit will likely comprise two current officers, with two recruits hired to backfill those positions. He says he’s already had conversations with several officers that are interested in serving on the team. “Our command staff will select the two best officers to serve in this role. We’ve had a significant amount of interest from our seasoned officers,” said Barnes. “What matters to them is working in a field where they can move the needle. Right now they don’t feel they are. They agree that this is a solution, this has the potential to positively impact the climate and culture downtown while serving the unhoused community.”
Tuesday’s vote was 9-2 with Alders Gary Gisselman and Tom Kilian providing the no votes. It also came one day after the Human Resources committee discussed the matter for nearly two hours including public input, input from the Chief, and conversation among the Committee members that occasionally turned tense.
That carried over into Tuesday in public comment and discussion among Alders. Many defended the need for the positions including District 10 Alder Lou Larson, who said it’s not about criminalizing homelessness. “When two teenagers are drag racing down your street. We don’t let them off by saying ‘you can’t criminalize being a teen,'” said Larson.
Those who spoke in favor of the positions in public comment included Police And Fire Commissioner Will Harris and Greater Wausau Chamber CEO Dave Eckman, who noted that earlier in the day someone broke into the Chamber office on Stewart Avenue through the backdoor, alarming the staff as they were preparing for Tuesday’s Small Business of the Year awards.
“Our frustration is your leadership is not meeting expectations of enforcing illegal behavior expected of any person in this community regardless of their economic status,” said Eckman. He added that he chose to attend Tuesday’s meeting to lobby for the extra officers over the Small Business of the Year banquet.
Those who spoke against the matter repeated their calls for more services, saying the officers would just “kick people out when they have no where to go.”
Barnes noted that social services, many of which are already provided in the community, need to work hand-in-hand with law enforcement. “This two-[officer] team doesn’t solve the problem, it doesn’t solve homelessness. What I believe [is we do need] AODA resources, mental health resources, affordable housing- all of that is true. But, in my research, no community has seen success without balanced enforcement.
“The community needs to set its standards, hold every member to those standards, and provide those things. But, neither works without the other,” added Barnes.
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