Officials in Saint Clair took some action Tuesday to address a staffing shortage on the borough’s police force.
Council members voted to hire two part-time police officers, Tyler Wall and Nicole Deliz, at a rate of $28 per hour.
Mayor Richard Tomko said at Tuesday’s meeting that Wall and Deliz will be used as “substitutes” but didn’t elaborate on what that meant.
The additions to the police force come two months after Acting Police Chief Brad Blanner sounded an alarm to council members by saying his department was running “on the rims” with a shortage in manpower.
At that time, Saint Clair had just four full-time officers and a number of shifts were covered by one officer.
It was revealed on Tuesday that two prospective candidates for full-time positions on the police force were taking their written exams this week.
At last week’s work session meeting, Councilman Norm Diehl floated the idea of putting officers on 12-hour shifts. He said he approached Blanner about it and the chief was receptive.
However, Tomko expressed some reservations and also said there are some budgetary concerns going forward.
In addition to the borough, Saint Clair is also paid to provide 24-7 police coverage to Palo Alto and East Norwegian Township.
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