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Harpers Ferry council debates police hires, vehicle replacements and reserve funding
Summary
At a town budget workshop, Harpers Ferry council members discussed the cost of adding police officers, the town vehicle fleet and reserve levels, sought grant options for equipment including AEDs, and voted to move into executive session on personnel and salary matters under West Virginia Code 694.
Harpers Ferry Town Council members used a budget workshop to debate police staffing and vehicle-replacement plans, consider funding sources for emergency equipment, and send the meeting into an executive session on personnel and salary issues.
Council members and staff discussed an estimated cost of about $102,000 per full-time police officer in current dollars and flagged the town's $500,000 backstop reserve as vulnerable if the council hired two officers immediately. Members said the town has five police vehicles with varying mileages and that at least one vehicle has high miles; they discussed a multiyear plan to accumulate replacement funds rather than buying immediately.
The discussion mattered because hiring decisions and vehicle purchases would reduce the town's reserve cushion and could require reallocating operating funds or pursuing outside grant support. Councilmembers repeatedly…
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