SULTAN – City officials will consider asking voters to approve a bond this fall to beef up police services.
The police department now has seven officers, Sultan Police Chief Fred Walser said. Three officers have moved on to other agencies since November.
“We had a crisis in manpower,” he said.
The city plans a town meeting Aug. 17 to hear from the public on what it wants out of police services and parks.
“I want the public to tell me what they expect,” Walser said.
The department has suffered budget cuts mainly because of an initiative that significantly cut car-tab license fees, Walser said. Passed in 1999, the initiative lowered license fees in most counties to a flat $30 rate, but cut tax revenues for cities.
Walser believes that his department needs a few more officers to provide adequate police protection for the town of more than 4,000 people.
The department is operating on a $870,000 annual budget and needs more money to add new officers, Walser said.
“Our desire is to increase the number of police officers,” Tolson said.
Tolson and Walser said they are considering a five-year bond request for the November ballot. If approved, the bond will help the department buy equipment and hire officers.
The amount of the bond has yet to be set, Walser said.
In 2004, Sultan residents voted down an 81-cent property tax increase to hire two additional police officers and a records clerk.
Meanwhile, the city plans to create two new parks in the future, Tolson said. The Aug. 17 meeting gives anyone an opportunity to speak about the new parks.
“We are just encouraging people to participate in the process,” he said.
Reporter Yoshiaki Nohara: 425-339-3029 or ynohara@heraldnet.com.
Town meeting
Sultan plans a town meeting at 7 p.m. Aug. 17 at Sultan Middle School, 301 High Ave. to discuss police services and parks.
For more information, call the city at 360-793-2231.
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