Councilors cite stormwater costs as factor in decision not to hire full-time officer; mayor says candidate deserves an explanation

Union City Borough Council discussed the prospect of adding a full-time police officer during its July 23 meeting but took no hiring action, with several councilors saying recent stormwater issues and the potential costs influenced their hesitation.

Mayor Robert Wolf said the borough owes the candidate an explanation after he completed testing and evaluations and described the applicant as qualified. "We owe the candidate an explanation for having him go through all this testing and evaluations. He is a good candidate and will be testing in the consortium," Wolf said. Councilor Melissa Winkler said she had not been aware the borough was actively pursuing another officer and raised concern about the costs associated with recent stormwater problems. Councilor James Kerns similarly connected hiring hesitation to the pending stormwater issues and associated unexpected costs, and the minutes record that council agreed the decision was related to those fiscal concerns rather than the candidate’s qualifications.

During public comment, Jeremy Sterling asked about the council’s decision not to hire another officer and what the expected outcome would be; council responded that the matter would be discussed later in the meeting. The minutes record both public questions and internal discussion but do not show any formal motion to hire or to reject hiring at this meeting.

The minutes show the borough then moved forward later in the meeting with specific stormwater repair work and procurement actions (see separate motions on accepting a $5,000 repair quote and awarding the Devereaux Park/French Creek Trail contract). An executive session on personnel and contracts followed the meeting; the minutes record no action from that session.

The minutes do not identify the applicant by name, and no final personnel decision was recorded at this meeting.