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Onalaska council unanimously approves hiring one police officer amid staffing uncertainty
Summary
The Onalaska Common Council voted unanimously Sept. 9 to authorize the city to begin hiring one police officer, with staff and aldermen citing current military deployments and possible retirements as reasons to start recruitment now.
The Onalaska Common Council voted unanimously on Sept. 9 to authorize the city to begin the process of hiring one police officer, a move councilors and staff said is intended to reduce staffing risk from current military deployments and anticipated retirements.
Human resources director Amy Franzen said recruitment typically takes several months: "typically with the police officer recruitment, it is about a 5, 6 month process in order to get that process started," she told the council, outlining a schedule that would include a 4–6 week posting, agility testing in October, interviews in November, background checks in November–December, and conditional offers before an academy that begins Feb. 9.
Councilors discussed the budgetary and operational trade-offs of hiring now. One alderman warned the decision carries a longer-term fiscal risk if the deployed officer returns early and expected retirements do not occur: "Now we have a $100,000 expense in 2027 that we weren't expecting," he said. Others said the city already faces stress from being short-staffed and that starting the hiring process now preserves the chance to have a trained officer available when needed.
A motion to move forward with hiring one police officer was made by Alder Jim Benash and seconded by Alder Larry Jurasic. The council then adopted the motion by roll call: Jim Benash — Aye; Kathy Lowendorf — Aye; Steven Knott — Aye; Mike Milke — Aye; Larry Jurasic — Aye; Diane Wolf — Aye. The motion passed unanimously.
Clarifying details provided by staff described the timeline and costs: recruits who attend the police academy receive 75% wages while in training; the city anticipates some vacated wages from deployed officers could offset the new hire's salary in 2026, but Finance Director Sabrina Steger cautioned that longer-term budget effects for 2027 are uncertain and would be a gamble without further revenue or retirements.
The council did not set an exact hiring start date in the motion; staff said they plan to post the position later in September and to proceed according to the timeline outlined if the council confirms funding.
Looking ahead, Chief and HR staff said the city hopes a new pay structure will improve chances of attracting lateral transfers who have already completed an academy, which could shorten the timeline to place officers on patrol.
