Prospect Heights police choosing new squad car design

The Prospect Heights Police Department is expected to introduce a new squad car design within the next several weeks, but department personnel first are wrapping up a vote on which of two potential looks the vehicles will have.

The outcome of the vote is expected to be announced sometime next week.

The change of the approximately 8-year-old design was inspired, in part, by the similarities between Prospect Heights' squad cars and those in nearby Buffalo Grove.

The designs are so close, Prospect Heights Police Chief Jim Zawlocki said, that he's sometimes momentarily wondered what one of his officers was doing in Buffalo Grove.

No matter which of the two possible designs are chosen, the new squad cars will be distinct, Zawlocki said.

Both designs will continue to use primarily white cars,but add a black and gold color scheme with a gold star on the door. They also will have the phrase "To Protect and Serve" on the front fender and the department's patch on the rear.

Zawlocki said the drawings of the two designs don't highlight the gold elements as well as the finished product will.

The change of the squad cars' look is planned to be cost-neutral, and will be phased in gradually as aging vehicles are retired at the normal rate. Though the first cars will appear within weeks, it's expected to take between two and three years before the entire fleet bears the new design.

City council members endorsed the plan at their meeting last week.