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To the Editor:
I want to set the record straight. During my first year of office on the village council, I realized that the excess from 2001 was no longer in the village funds. The previous village administrator had spent all of the revenue. It would take many years to recuperate the loss.
Council has restructured the village administrator position and tightened the budget. In 2002, the police department spent more than $200,000, which was way over budget.This in turn forced council to borrow $60,000 from the water fund. Unfortunately, this was due to very bad judgement on the village administrator, since it was put into his hands. This, along with the salary of the village administrator, exhausted any excess money that the village had in reserve.
The Malvern Police Department cost the taxpayers more than $130,000 in 2006 and was in need of vehicles. It was council's decision to contact the sheriff's office because of the rising cost of operating the police station. The contract consisted of 79 hours of staggered coverage; the village would pay all expenses for the substation, with the exclusion of long-distance calls; Deputy Yost would stay in the village and patrol for 40 hours a week. Yost would have better medical coverage and his hourly rate would be higher. All other expenses would be the responsibility of the sheriff. The cost of this contract which started May 1, 2007, and ends April 30, 2008, would be $86,000. As you can see this option was the better route to take.
When it came time to renew the contract, the remaining budget for the law-enforcement officer was $28,000. The sheriff's department could not afford one 40-hour officer to patrol the village at that price. With the cost-of-living increase due to the union contract and the cost of gas, it was not possible for the sheriff to have an officer here in the village. It would cost more than $90,000. This was not justified in council's opinion.
After reviewing the amount and description of calls answered by the sheriff's department, it was our decision to go on a month-to-month basis with the sheriff's department allow them to still use the substation.
Angela Lambert
Councilwoman
Malvern, Ohio