Round Rock recognized among top 50 safest cities in the U.S.

Round Rock is being recognized for its safety. 

According to a new study by personal finance website MoneyGeek, the city ranks 26th out of 292 U.S. cities on the list of safest cities in America.

MoneyGeek study

Big picture view:

MoneyGeek’s annual analysis looks at the most recent crime statistics from the FBI to estimate the cost of crime in cities with populations greater than 100,000 across the United States.

To determine the rankings, MoneyGeek analyzed crime data, including violent crimes such as murder, rape, and aggravated assault, as well as property crimes like burglary and motor vehicle theft.

The study then calculated each city’s cost of crime per capita, highlighting the financial impact of crime on communities, and its total economic losses attributed to crime and its cost to society.

The cities were then ranked by the crime cost per capita.

By the numbers:

The findings revealed that Round Rock’s societal cost of crime per resident was $575—well below the national average of $2,178.

The city's violent crime rate is 138 per 100,000 residents and the property crime rate is 2,156 per 100,000 residents, with the total crime cost at $74,650.

Compare this to Austin, which appears on the list at 162, with a cost of crime per resident at $1,871, a violent crime rate of 499 per 100,000 residents, a property crime rate of 3306 per 100,000 residents and a total crime cost of $1,831,620.

Dallas and Houston also appear on the list at 248 and 250 respectively. 

Other safe Texas cities that made the top 50 cut include Frisco (2), Pearland (13), Plano (18), Sugar Land (20), McKinney (22), Grand Prairie (42), and League City (48).

Round Rock officials react

Local perspective:

"Our citizens demand us to be safe. And we put our money where our mouth is and of our $169 million general fund budget, about 70 million goes to public safety. That's police and fire. So, the overwhelming majority of the budget is spent on keeping our citizens safe," said Round Rock mayor Craig Morgan.

"Community policing is a big part of overall public safety. And so, I think that with the interaction, the visibility of the police, I mean, we're hiring ten new police officers this year in our budget. You know, all those factors, I think there's a number of them that probably attribute and contribute to that number," said Morgan.

Morgan says the city council has always supported law enforcement throughout the years.

Voters appear to feel the same way. Just five years after opening the city's public safety training facility, voters approved about $14 million in bonds to expand the center.

RELATED COVERAGE: Round Rock Police move forward with safety training center expansion

"It allows our officers to train right here in Round Rock. They don't have to leave the community, and they train for all aspects of things that they may face on a daily basis," said Morgan.

As for what Morgan hopes the community takes away from this recognition: "I just hope our citizens realize how much they care about the community, that they want to do their best to protect and serve all our citizens," said Morgan.

The Source: Information in this report comes from MoneyGeek and reporting by FOX 7 Austin's Jenna King.

Round RockCrime and Public Safety