Source: Prepared by PSSG based on Source: CAD records provided by the Department of Emergency Management.
Five District Impact on Community and SFPD Perceptions
As discovered during the survey and focus group process, both City residents and members of the SFPD desire additional Officers in the Districts. While they desire change, the community members believe that increased numbers of Officers in the District is dependant on more stations. SFPD members are split as to changing the Districts. Community members expressed apprehension about change based on concerns over decreased service levels and comfort with their current station.
It is understood that the current boundaries have evolved over time and that individuals feel a certain connection to “their” District. What was also discovered however was that many community members did not know which District they were in, were unsure if their district boundaries divided neighborhoods, and the majority (from 74% to 87%) of residents have never been to a district station.
An area that the SFPD needs to evaluate is the process of community engagement and connection of the SFPD to the residents of the City. Currently, less than 50% of department members were aware of the neighborhood boundaries in relation to the SFPD station boundaries. This lack of awareness highlights the need for the SFPD to be more orientated to the community. Consolidation of Districts can be a catalyst for increasing the SFPD’s attempts to integrate Community Policing and increase the interaction of Officers with neighborhoods.
Crime is a topic of priority in the City, changing District configurations will enable the SFPD to address crime differently and with more resources. By its own experience with the transition of the Tenderloin Task Force to a physical police station, the mere presence of one does not necessarily result in a drop in crime. The reduction of the number of stations will streamline processes within the SFPD and decrease the need for maintaining ten facilities.
Benefits from District Realignment and Facility Consolidation and
Reuse
The City and SFPD will benefit from the reconfiguration of the district boundaries in several ways ranging from increased visibility to enhanced working conditions and better use of resources. The following provides information on the types of benefits expected from the reconfiguration of the Districts.
Increase in Police Services and Visibility
• Reconfiguring the Districts increases the number of Officers on patrol. At a minimum three to five Officers could be redeployed per station with the potential to re-deploy ninety to one hundred Officers, representing a 10% increase over current patrol deployment. This matches the desire of the community for increased visibility and has a positive impact on police operations. Currently, 30% - 40% of patrol personnel at the Districts are
assigned to administrative duties. Of this 30% - 40% administrative personnel assigned to the Districts, 22% are supervisors, 7 - 11% are assigned to the Captains’ Staff and another 10% - 20% are assigned to non patrol functions33.
Increase the Ratio of Supervisors to Officers
• Flattening the organization and increasing the number of Officers reporting to each supervisor will streamline the organization and increase effectiveness. The current reporting ratio ranges from a low of 3.7 to a high of 6.7. At minimum the ratio should be 1:7 which would also allow for increased street level supervision.
Redistribute Workload
• Workload distribution is not well balanced at the district stations. The lightest workloads are in areas with the least amount of calls for service and the highest workloads are in the areas most impacted by crime. Calls per Officer range from approximately 450 to 1,100 per year; this becomes equalized under the district boundaries recommendations.
Concentrated Unified Crime Planning and Police Operations
• District realignment will allow for greater direction of prevention and intervention initiatives and more effective use of resources as currently the SFPD operates as ten separate police agencies rather that a single department. District realignment is a step toward changing the organizational culture related to effective policing.
Facilities
• It is fiscally responsible to build a single station to serve the Northeast corner of the City and retrofit the existing stations.
• Specialized units occupying vacated stations will place the resources more strategically throughout the City, provide increased visibility and eliminate the need for leasing facilities.
Neighborhood Unification
• Reconfiguring the boundaries decreases the number of neighborhoods split by District lines. This matches the desire of the community. Map 15 shows the neighborhoods in relation to the conceptual lines of the proposed five Districts. While there are not any official set lines for neighborhoods and there
are numerous sub sections of neighborhoods, the proposed Districts cut through very few traditional neighborhood areas
• Reconfiguring the boundaries streamlines the overlapping of Supervisorial Districts with the district stations. Map 16 shows the Supervisorial Districts along with the current districts and Map 17 shows the Supervisorial Districts along with the proposed five police districts. Currently, the Supervisorial Districts cover several police districts with seven Supervisorial Districts covering three or more police Districts. Under the proposed plan there are ten of the Supervisorial District covering one or two police Districts. Table 10 shows the Supervisorial District along with the corresponding proposed five Districts.
Table 12: Comparison of Supervisorial and Proposed Five Districts
Comparison of Supervisorial and Proposed Police Districts Supervisorial District SFPD Proposed District Portion of SFPD Proposed District within Supervisorial District 1 Northwest all 2 Northwest partial 2 Northeast partial 3 Northeast all 4 Northwest partial 4 Southwest partial 5 Northwest partial 5 Northeast partial 6 Middle partial 6 Northeast partial 7 Northwest partial
7 Southwest small portion 8 Northwest small portion 8 Southwest small portion 8 Middle partial
8 Northeast small portion 9 Southeast partial 9 Middle partial 10 Southeast partial 10 Middle partial 11 Southwest partial 11 Southeast partial Source: PSSG