Search Begins to Replace Longtime Police Chief

The search will begin Monday to replace longtime Waukee Police Chief Larry Phillips, whose retirement is being forced by a state law.

The Waukee City Council will consider a measure at Monday’s meeting to enter into a contract with a professional search firm to name a police chief by March, when Phillips turns 66.

Phillip is the city’s first police chief and will no longer be eligible for state officer certification when he turns 66 on March 4. His 35th anniversary with the department occurs in January and he will be leaving with some mixed emotions.

“I am a street cop, always have been,” Phillips told the Des Moines Register.

When Phillips joined the department in 1979, he was one of three fulltime officers. Today, there are 15 fulltime officers, with a 16th to be added in January.