FRANKFORT — Frankfort Police Chief Scott Shoemaker said this week that the city’s next budget is the first in his six years as chief that has him worried about losing officers, telling listeners of WILO’s “Party Line” that property tax changes could push the department toward layoffs and pull school resource officers out of Frankfort classrooms.
“We’re gonna be laying police officers off. I mean that’s where I’m at in terms of my mind, or not hiring through attrition,” Shoemaker said, adding that no new officers will be hired under the coming budget.
Budget pressure and Senate Bill 1
Shoemaker pointed to state property tax legislation as the source of the squeeze, saying he has been raising the issue on the program since Senate Bill 1 was enacted and feels largely alone in doing so. “Society needs to determine what it wants,” he said. “You don’t want to pay taxes, but you want services.”
He said the department currently spends about $200,000 a year to place officers in Frankfort’s elementary schools, while the school corporation pays for the middle school and high school positions. If cuts come, he said, those elementary positions are among the first things at risk, because he is not willing to reduce coverage for 911 calls.
Shoemaker also said pay competitiveness has slipped. He said a state Fraternal Order of Police survey covering roughly 129 police and fire departments placed Frankfort in the lower 20 for pay, down from what he described as a much stronger position several years ago, and said the city now compares to smaller communities such as Delphi and Sheridan.
He said federal grants funded three additional officers in anticipation of annexation over the last three years, but grants require the city to keep those positions on the payroll afterward. Two have been written into the budget; a third remains unfunded. “I don’t think the public really understands what they’re going to get from saving a couple hundred dollars a year,” he said.
Shoemaker noted the city completed its annexation of the NHK property on Friday, Sept. 11, expanding city service obligations.
Burglary arrest credited to overnight patrol
Shoemaker described a recent burglary case in which officers spotted a suspect vehicle at about 6:13 a.m. while checking closed businesses — work he said the officers initiated on their own. The department had information on a vehicle from its investigations but had released little publicly, he said, because the break-ins targeted closed businesses with no individual victims and police did not want to alarm residents about a “serial burglar.”
Officers saw the vehicle leaving the Dollar Tree just as a patrol car passed, he said. The driver fled at high speed, went through a fence and struck vehicles before a night-shift officer spotted the car turning north on Columbia Street, putting police roughly two blocks behind.
A new officer, Ben McGuinness, hired from the Fishers Police Department, was in field training during the pursuit. Shoemaker said McGuinness had prior law enforcement experience but is still completing the department’s training program.
Drug enforcement numbers down
Asked whether the perception of reduced drug activity in the community is accurate, Shoemaker said it is. He said dealing is down enough that the department’s drug fund is not being fully spent on enforcement, and that he was able to use those dollars to cover a roughly $5,000 air conditioner repair approved by the Board of Works rather than request additional city money. He credited community organizations, including Healthy Communities and Center Township, with easing the department’s workload.
Overdoses, however, are up this year, he said, attributing that to unpredictable drug supply. Two drug detectives are focused on dealers, working with the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office drug unit. Shoemaker was pointed about public commentary on drugs and homelessness in Frankfort, saying the scale of the problem locally does not match larger cities. “Come to my office,” he said, offering to ride with critics to the locations they describe.
Chief says he personally favors a data center
Asked by a listener whether he supports a data center, Shoemaker said the view was his personal opinion and that he has no role in the decision.
“I’m biased. I guess the data center will take care of our budget problems,” he said. “The data center will allow me to keep the best and highly trained officers and provide them with the equipment to do their job.”
He compared the debate to earlier infrastructure disputes over railroads, power lines and paved roads, and said residents who oppose data centers while using streaming, delivery and search services are working against their own habits. “When it goes to the cloud, it doesn’t mean it’s in the clouds,” he said. “It’s in a data center somewhere.”
Shoemaker also urged residents to keep upcoming public meetings peaceful, saying he has taken on added security planning for the open houses and city council meeting. “Just say your piece,” he said. “And if you can’t be civil, then don’t show up.”
Data One open houses set
Representatives from Data One will be in Frankfort Monday and Tuesday for two separate open houses at the 51 West Event Center, scheduled at different times of day to accommodate work schedules.
- Monday, Sept. 21, from 5 to 8 p.m.
- Tuesday, Sept. 22, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
- On WILO/Boone 102.7 FM/Hoosierland TV: Tuesday Sept. 22 at 8:30 am. Questions can be submitted to newsroom@kasparradio.com
One session at 51 West is set for the evening and another during midday hours. Company representatives will also appear on “Party Line” for a full hour Tuesday and will take listener calls at 659-3338.
Additional information is posted at Clinton, Carroll and Boone County Daily News.
Twenty years on the job
Shoemaker marked 20 years in law enforcement on Sept. 2 and said his pension is now locked in, giving him freedom to speak candidly. He said the average tenure for a police chief is three to four years; he has served six.
He credited his command staff — Evan Hall, Brady Shorels and Caesar Munoz — along with the department’s lieutenants. An officer injured in March is expected to return to full duty by the middle of next month, he said. Shoemaker called 2025 the hardest of his six years as chief, citing a deputy chief injured in a head-on collision, an officer arrested, a resignation and recruiting difficulties. He said he has no immediate plans to retire.
“I really love my job,” he said. “I think there’s a lot of good things about to happen in our city.”
