Waynesville police raises cost more than expected

Tom Lotshaw, The Mountaineer, Waynesville, N.C.
·2 min read

Oct. 15—Boosting minimum starting pay for police personnel in Waynesville turned out to be more expensive than expected — about 45% more expensive.

Waynesville's Board of Aldermen in September agreed to increase minimum starting pay for a police officer from $37,585 to $40,500 and to adjust the pay for 14 different career grades above that starting pay to all be 5% apart. Aldermen also agreed to increase minimum starting pay for communications personnel and for evidence and records personnel to $35,000 — up from $31,370 and $31,645.

The pay increases are meant to make the town's police department more competitive with neighboring jurisdictions, and help it attract qualified recruits and retain career law enforcement professionals.

Town staff initially estimated the increases would require a budget change order of approximately $132,862. But that estimate did not include fringe benefits and was based on several "computational errors." The actual budget change order needed turned out to be $193,701 — nearly $61,000 more.

Aldermen unanimously approved the change order Tuesday for the pay increases to take effect.

In other business, the town board:

—Approved procedures for appointing a 13-member downtown advisory board. The board will include four downtown merchants, four downtown property owners, four at-large members, one representative from the Waynesville Board of Aldermen, and one county commissioner or county staff member. Board applications will be taken until Nov. 12. According to town officials, the nonprofit Downtown Waynesville Administration, which previously administered the town's Main Street program, will keep approximately $80,000 that it has retained from previous years but not kept in an account where officials could determine if it was money provided by the town or money raised from the group's events.

—Agreed to spend $10,000 to help pay for an engineering study to look at connecting the water systems of Clyde, Canton and Waynesville to be able to provide water in cases of emergency such as fires, line breaks or droughts.

—Passed a resolution to seek state approval to refinance a $2.99 million Fire Station 1 loan with a 4.5% interest rate through a new 1.99% loan. The move is expected to save the town $1 million. Savings would be used to purchase a new fire tanker truck and reimburse the town for a land purchase for Fire Station 2.

—Approved a conditional district amendment for Waynesville Country Club to develop eight single-family units on 2.84 acres where a hotel and three duplexes have been demolished.