The Mountain View Police Department, under the leadership of Chief Michael Nesbitt who was appointed in August of 2023, has been rising to the challenge of policing a small town in a friendly way.
Residents of the town have noticed a radar trailer that has been moved around town, collecting data about numbers and speeds of vehicles. Cpl. Brian Ranck, who has been with the department since July of 2021, is tasked with collecting and analyzing the data the trailer provides.
According to Cpl. Ranck, the radar trailer recorded more than 23,000 cars traveling on 43 Avenue between Benton Street and Depew (in both directions) in a two-week period of April. The goal is to understand the patterns and plan for appropriate and strategic policing where it will have the highest impact. The department plans to share all the stats when there is a clear picture of the information that the trailer gathers.
Under direction from the Council, the department is also working with traffic engineers to look at what might support safety concerns at intersections of alleys and streets, especially.Residents have been pleased to see the Police Department already working to calm and contr ol traffic through town, so that less stop signs are being run and less speeders threaten the safety of pedestrians, bikes, and pets.
“We know some of this,” said Chief Nesbitt. “We don’t need to wait for a radar trailer to tell us people are running that stop sign.” Chief Nesbitt said it was important to him to be responsive to the community as part of his vision for the town.
“This is especially important during rush hour, and when there is construction on 44th,” Chief Nesbitt stated recently. “We want people to come to our town for the yard sale in June, or movie night in July. But we don’t want them just speeding through our stop signs or doing 40 down Chase Street. That’s not okay with me. So, we’re going to be keeping an eye on that, and people should obey the traffic rules if they don’t want to be stopped on their way through town.”
When asked if he thinks the officers all have the same commitment he does, the Chief laughed and said, “Well, yes, I do! I think all the officers understand how important this is. They know we are here for the residents. That’s the whole point of having a police department for a 12-block town. To keep the residents safe!”
The officers will be getting out on bikes when the weather is nice and are looking forward to National Night Out on the first Tuesday of August. They are also planning a community forum. More details will be coming soon.
