Facebook (News - Alert) will pay the city of Menlo Park, Calif. more than $200,000 per year for three years to fund a police officer who will focus on safety issues in the company’s neighborhood.

KPIX-TV reported that the officer will be assigned to a substation close to the company’s headquarters. The officer will serve the area surrounding the headquarters.

Facebook’s proposal was approved by the Menlo Park City Council this week – and was praised by the local police chief. "It is a win-win-win ... but it's a win for the broader community as well," Chief Bob Jonsen said during the council meeting.

The officer will work with schools and businesses in the Belle Haven neighborhood. The section has “a big problem with gangs, drugs and shootings,” according to the news report. Among the tasks the officer will undertake are emergency drills and meeting with at-risk teenagers, as well as coming up with plans for improving safety.

“It's about building community relationships,” Menlo Park Mayor Ray Mueller added in a statement to KPIX-TV. “If a crime occurs or someone hears something, they feel comfortable coming to the police officer and saying, 'Hey, I know about this. I trust you.'" Mueller said the arrangement with Facebook will not lead to a conflict of interest. "Facebook as a company has not put any restrictions on how we use this officer," Jonsen added in a statement to KPIX-TV. "All they've ever asked from us is what we can do as a company, meaning Facebook, to help you, law enforcement, in making this a better community."

In addition, Facebook paid $200,000 for the new substation, and it will open later this year.

Meanwhile, it is believed that Facebook will be the first U.S. company to pay for a full-time police officer. Other companies may follow its example. “It’s safe to say this is unprecedented,” Jim Bueermann, president of the Police Foundation, was quoted by the local NBC TV news department, “but this may be the model of the future.” Typically, businesses will hire police officers to provide security at events or special circumstances, but that is often off-duty income.

The possible new trend of a full-time officer assigned to a business created concern for Alessandro De Giorgi, a justice studies professor at San Jose State University, given that officers are otherwise paid for out of public funds.

In a related trend, Google (News - Alert) recently made a donation of millions of dollars so low-income youngsters in San Francisco can ride for free on public transit, according to TMCnet. Google will give $6.8 million after criticism that tech company employees were using private shuttles that stopped at public bus stops.