By Joe Bachman and for the City Times

According to a report released in early April by Backgroundchecks.org, Wisconsin Rapids has been listed as one of “Wisconsin’s 50 Safest Cities.”

Mayor Zach Vruwink. (Contributed photo)

The leading online database for public records research revealed that Wisconsin Rapids ranked 25th out of the 50 cities listed. The report is compiled by recent FBI crime reports, social media sentiment analysis, natural language analysis, and proprietary research methodology.

“Listed as one of Wisconsin’s safest cities is a testament to the work of our public safety and the public investment we make,” said Wisconsin Rapids Mayor Zach Vruwink. “I am proud of our efforts to maintain and make improvements in making our community a great place to live, work and do business.”

Crime rates for each city are normalized per 100,000 residents, calculated by taking the number of crimes per population, multiplied by 100,000. The State of Wisconsin average for 2016 was 290 for violent crime and 2,088 for property crime.

Police Chief Kurt Heuer. (Courtesy: Kurt Heuer)

By comparison, the violent crime rate for Wisconsin Rapids is 81.4, and residents of Wisconsin Rapids have a 4.5 percent chance of being affected by property crime.

“Being named in the top 50 of Wisconsin’s Safest Cities is really a credit to our community,” said Chief of Police Kurt Heuer. “We enjoy a great quality of life because our citizens care — they are a critical part of public safety.  I am very proud of the women and men serving with the Wisconsin Rapids Police Department and the connections they have with our community.”