Mayor’s Minute

By Frank V. Brocato

It’s no secret that the viability of a city depends in large part on the security and safety of its residents and those who visit.

We are fortunate that in Hoover, our public safety teams understand this concept and work hard every day to provide unparalleled protection. For this reason, I am extremely proud of the Hoover Police Department for receiving accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, the gold standard in public safety. This is the Hoover Police Department’s first CALEA accreditation, and it demonstrates the high quality of service the department provides to our community.

Frank V. Brocato

One of the reasons our department stands out is because our chief and his team refuse to rest on their laurels. They are constantly looking for areas in which to improve and grow.

To earn this distinction, the department was reviewed and measured against 180 internationally accepted public safety standards. Nationally, accreditation is obtained by only about 5% of all law enforcement agencies. In Alabama, our Police Department is one of just 13 municipal law enforcement agencies with CALEA accreditation.

In an effort to help them accomplish this goal, we opened the Hoover Police Training Center in 2021. The center has our officers stay current on the latest policing trends and equipment, but it has also done so much more. For example, in 2022, over 550 sworn personnel and civilians attended training at our facility. We hosted government delegations from two different countries — Hungary and Maldives. And our own department received more than $28,000 in free training for hosting classes.

We are so proud of the accomplishments and work that our police department and all of our public safety departments are doing. We truly thank them for their service.