Council members cite stormwater costs as reason hiring a full-time officer stalled

Union City Borough Council members discussed the council’s decision not to hire an additional full‑time police officer, with budget concerns over recent stormwater repair needs cited as the decisive factor.

Mayor Robert Wolf said the candidate had completed testing and evaluations and indicated the individual “is a good candidate and will be testing in the consortium,” while councilors said the motion failed because of concerns about funding unexpected stormwater costs. Resident Jeremy Sterling had asked earlier why the council declined to hire another officer and what the next steps would be.

Why it matters: Council members framed the hiring decision as a tradeoff between public safety staffing and near‑term, unplanned infrastructure expenses. Councilor Melissa Winkler said she was not aware the borough had been pursuing another officer and that she was concerned about the costs associated with recent stormwater issues. Councilor James Kerns said the council’s hesitation was not a reflection on the candidate but rather on the pending stormwater work and related expenses.

The police chief provided the department’s June 2024 report; councilors had no questions about that report during the meeting. No formal motion to hire was passed during the meeting, and council did not take further action on staffing that night.

The discussion concluded without a vote or directive to hire; council moved on to infrastructure and budget items later in the agenda. The council then entered an executive session on personnel and contracts after adjournment and took no public action during that session.