City, Mayo agree to add 3 full-time officers at St. Marys

Mayo Clinic and the Rochester Police Department entered into a new agreement Wednesday, after the city council approved a proposal for officers to be permanently stationed at St. Marys Hospital.

Mayo committed about $500,000 annually to the agreement, which creates three new Hospital Resource Officer positions at the St. Marys campus. The program would be similar — but not identical — to the deal between the department and Rochester Public Schools, which created School Resource Officer positions at each of the three public high schools.

The council approved the resolution without comment Wednesday.

Capt. Jeff Stilwell says RPD responds to around 500 calls at St. Marys each year. He called the agreement a “win-win” and said the new positions will keep officers where they’re needed most.

“It’s just a much better, more efficient way to deliver service,” said Stilwell. “We know for a fact that those 500 calls will be reduced by having them there. Just like in the school, many times before an assault happens, there’s an argument that if we could just come and mediate, we won’t have an assault report. Our vision is for them to be a part of the ecosystem.”

The old system, according to Stilwell, treated St. Marys like any other building — officers tasked with patrolling neighborhoods would be called downtown if a problem arose. Under this new agreement, he says both the hospital and Rochester neighborhoods stand to benefit.

“It’s a program designed to keep neighborhood cops in neighborhoods, and the fact that they’re willing to pay for the full-time resources so we can fully dedicate people to the program is a big plus for the city and for the department,” Stilwell said in an interview prior to Monday’s vote. “I know how long it takes to get from the heart of the city back to, say, the north side of town, so this will keep officers where they need to be.”

The agreement goes into effect July 1. Officers would primarily be located at the St. Marys campus, but have the ability to respond to calls across the Clinic’s entire Rochester operation.

Isaac Jahns is a Rochester native and a 2019 graduate of the Missouri School of Journalism. He reports on politics, business and music for Med City Beat.