Upper Nazareth Supervisors Still Split on Hiring Full-Time Officer

For the third straight meeting, the decided for the township police department.

The only difference? There was no lively discussion, which was a feature during the previous two meetings.

Supervisors Mike Rinker and Scott Sylvainus voted in favor of Rinker's motion Wednesday night to hire a full-time officer -- a position that is included . Supervisors James Augustine and Andy Donello voted against it.

Willard Mohn was absent from the meeting, so the vote was tied -- 2-2.

Rinker and Police Chief Alan Siegfried previously spoke in favor of the hire, noting that the Upper Nazareth Police Department plays a dangerous game when it relies on part-time officers to supplement the department's five full-time patrol officers in 24/7 coverage.

The department has seven full-time officers overall including Siegfried and a school resource officer in the Nazareth Area School District.

Several of the department's part-time officers, who could be counted on to work shifts at short notice in the past, plan to look for other work, Siegfried has said. That could lead to staffing shortages that would require full-time officers to work overtime and create other problems.

Augustine, an assistant Northampton County district attorney, said he voted "no" for the same reasons he cited previously.

“We should be extremely cautious,” Augustine said at the Feb. 15 meeting. “For the time being the prudent thing to do is to wait it out.”

Sylvainus, however, noted that the township brought in more revenue in January and February than anticipated.

"We were anticipating to borrow $10,000 to $20,000 from our savings, but we didn't have to borrow at all," Sylvainus said.

Augustine and Donello previously said they'd like to see tax revenue roll in before they commit to hiring another officer -- something that is happening, as Sylvainus pointed out -- but they still weren't quite ready to commit.

During public comment at the end of the meeting, a resident asked Rinker -- and the rest of the supervisors -- to please come to an agreement. She added that she didn't understand why the position still wasn't approved.

"Me neither," Rinker quietly agreed.

After the public meeting, the topic was headed for executive session. Augustine and Sylvainus asked for the session, which is not for public consumption, to discuss a letter from the township police association.