Give Me New Contract, Police Chief Says

"I'm your chief for now."

Well that's not good enough for Nazareth Police Chief Thomas Trachta, who issued a statement at Nazareth Borough Council's meeting Monday that he wants a new contract.

Trachta, whose contract expired in December 2011, told the audience that he is being retained on a month-to-month basis.

"I'd like to know your plans for me," said Trachta, the borough's police chief since October 2009.

Trachta said that ever since a proposal for Colonial Regional Police to provide police coverage died and that officials said Nazareth's police department would continue, the chief has asked for a status update.

"It's ridiculous that the borough is still trying to figure this out," Trachta said.

He said he was told by Council President Dan Chiavaroli that he "did not know what they are doing in regards to the police department so they don’t want to do anything (with his job status) until they figure it out.”

“The Nazareth Police Department is still very unstable and has no direction. Hiring a couple of new part-timers is not an acceptable answer,” Trachta said in reading a statement. “This situation has been going on for years. Many lives are being negatively impacted by not properly investing in the current Nazareth Borough Police Department. The citizens, the current police officers, the Pennsylvania State Police and our neighboring police department have all been waiting for council to come up with a solution to this lack of full-time officers.”

"The statement, ‘You are the chief for now’ is doing a great job of keeping the officers guessing as to what is next,” Trachta concluded. “This is not a good work environment to recruit other officers to apply for a job here. Some of the current officers are looking to jump ship for a more stable situation. I feel the residents deserve better than just kicking the can further down the road."

After Trachta issued his statement, no borough council members addressed it.

"I'm asking the Police Committee and Council to make a decision on the police chief's contract," Mayor Carl Strye Jr. said. "We need to get questions answered and concerns addressed."