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Council hears preliminary estimate to add full‑time officer; staff to provide detailed 2027 budget options
Summary
Council discussed staffing shortages and overtime with police officials; one councilor estimated roughly $70,000 in additional first‑year costs to add a full‑time officer and flagged high per‑head policing costs for special events.
Council reviewed police staffing, training and overtime pressures and asked staff to provide detailed budget scenarios for 2027. A council member summarized initial cost modeling: "the rough estimate here is is around $70,000 that would cost us additional for that full time officer," noting that the figure reflected roughly 75% of salary in year one plus benefits and that the amount would rise in following years.
Councilors also discussed the borough's reimbursement from Clark's for event policing. One council member said his quick calculation showed the borough's cost to police events remained well above what Clark's pays: "it still comes to $234.53 per head to police," he said, while noting Clark's currently pays about $62.52 per head. Members directed staff to assemble complete line‑item figures so the council can evaluate adding a permanent position versus continuing to rely on part‑time coverage and overtime.
