Trustees update Boardman Plan, will add 2 police officers per year

The police department, now at 47 members, used to boast 63 officers.

By Denise Dick

BOARDMAN — Township trustees plan to hire two new police officers each year through 2014.

That would take the police department, now at 47 officers, to 57 officers by the end of five years. That goal is one of the elements of the Boardman Plan, updated at trustees’ regular meeting Monday.

The department formerly had 63 officers but has dwindled as officers who have retired or resigned for other jobs haven’t been replaced because of the township’s financial problems.

The plan document, initially passed in 2008, sets out the priorities and objectives for the township along with the vision and mission of trustees and the fiscal officer.

“We have a new contract [with police patrol officers] with a two-tier wage schedule,” said Trustee Thomas Costello.

That contract calls for lower pay for new officers and will allow the township to hire additional police officers, Costello said.

Trustee Brad Calhoun expects two officers will be hired by late summer.

Because the current civil-service test for police officers is expiring, a new test will be scheduled, explained Larry Moliterno, trustees chairman. Prospective officers take a civil-service test, and their score is used in deciding who gets hired.

Costello said the plan, which includes objectives for all township departments, is a living document.

“As we go forward, we’ll make changes and adjustments as they’re needed,” he said.

Dates for meeting the goals also will be added later, Moliterno said.

Another goal is to revive compost drop-off for residents. The township formerly provided residents with the Beast, a composter/mulcher where they could drop off their yard debris. The material was turned into mulch that was given to residents.

That service halted, though, in early 2008, when the township’s financial problems led to layoffs in the road department. Road department employees operated the Beast, but after the layoffs, there weren’t enough people to run it.

Calhoun said that the township has been talking to a vendor about the possibility of allowing residents to drop off their compost materials at that business once a week.

“The contractor would then use that material to create mulch,” he said.

If agreement can’t be reached with a vendor, the township will look for other ways to bring back compost drop-off.

Moliterno said there’s a renewed spirit of cooperation between the board and the various employee unions.

All of the grievances in the road department, for example, have been resolved, Calhoun said.

“Part of that cooperation with the unions and the board is because they’ve seen a new level of cooperation among the board,” Costello said.

denise_dick@vindy.com

Trustees on Monday approved an updated Boardman Plan, a set of priorities and goals for the township. Some highlights:

Trustees/administration

Develop and implement effective communication with residents and community stakeholders.

Update as needed on a regular basis the capital improvement plan.

Explore regional cooperation with other communities.

Police

Attain a staff of 57 police officers by Dec. 31, 2014.

Proactive training and professional development opportunities.

Fire

Maintain operations of three fire stations.

Develop a plan for the renovation/relocation of U.S. Route 224 fire station and the fire prevention office.

Explore the feasibility of an in-house ambulance service.

Road

Provide availability to residents for drop-off compost materials.

Implement a road-repaving plan to ensure township roads don’t overextend their life expectancy.

Address flooding concerns with implementation of projects on the capital improvement plan.

Zoning

Proactive training and professional development opportunities.

Review neighborhood infrastructure.

Protect the integrity of the community.

Fiscal

Phase out reliance on the inheritance tax from the operations budget and move to create a capital-improvement fund.

Restructuring the budgeting process to give more authority and responsibility to department heads to manage their departments.

Create user-friendly finance reports for trustees and department heads to monitor expenses and revenue on a monthly basis.

Develop a five-year projection of revenues and expenses.

Source: Boardman Plan