Broken Arrow Using Vision Money To Hire More Police Officers

Soon, more police officers will be patrolling Broken Arrow streets.

The department is using Vision 2025 tax money to create 20 new positions over the next five years.

The Broken Arrow Police Department said it won't have any trouble filling the new positions because there's so much interest in working there - more than 200 people applied for the next academy.

Next month, 11 new officers are expected to graduate from the academy - five of which are new positions paid for by Vision money.

Another academy, starting in October, will fill five more new positions.

Officer James Koch said, "We've never had a police department this large before."

The three-year veteran officer said he isn't just proud to work for Broken Arrow, there's nowhere else he'd rather be.

"It's the best place to work in northeast Oklahoma - if not, the entire state of Oklahoma," Koch said.

Right now, it takes about six minutes from the time someone in Broken Arrow calls 911 to the time police arrive.

Koch said once the department is expanded to have more officers, that response time should be even shorter.

But, until then, the department will have to choose who they want to carry a badge; and Koch said because 228 people applied for the next academy, the department has the advantage of being selective.

"That will give us the opportunity to hire the best of the best," he said.

Another change coming to the department because of Vision money - they're phasing out white patrol cars and by the end of the year, they expect to only be using newer black and white patrol cars.