ROSWELL, Ga. — Elected officials are taking steps to increase public safety in Roswell.
The City Council approved a resolution May 23 to apply for a grant that would allow the city to hire nine new full-time police officers. The council also approved the first reading of a proposed $172.8 million fiscal year 2023 budget with funding to transition the Roswell Fire Department from part time to full time within the next five years.
Mayor Kurt Wilson said Roswell is the only sister city in North Fulton without a full-time fire department.
“We are blessed to have an incredible [fire] chief in Joe Pennino and his leadership and his team,” Wilson said. “We figured it was time for our residents and for the long term, that this council and mayor take on the challenge of funding a full-time fire department, which is a colossal challenge. That’s why it hasn’t been done in the past.”
Right now Roswell is the only North Fulton city without a full-time fire department. City officials want to change that, and are proposing a plan to hire 21 full-time captains.
Wilson said the city plans to share the results of a gap analysis that was done on the Roswell Fire Department at a workshop on Monday, June 13. Gap analyses are done to compare actual performance with potential or desired performance. Wilson said Roswell’s shows just how vulnerable it is with a part-time fire department, which only became more evident during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Right now, Wilson said, the Roswell Fire Department is generally fully staffed on Tuesdays, but during hunting season, there are times when it is only 50 percent staffed. Additionally, because Roswell’s firefighters are part time, they can call out to respond to their first place of employment in places like Cherokee or Gwinnett counties, leaving the city vulnerable during regional events.
The proposed fiscal year 2023 budget includes $14.9 million for the Roswell Fire Department. If approved, a portion of those funds would be used to hire 21 full-time captains. Separately, the proposed budget contains $31.3 million for the Roswell Police Department.
A second and final reading for the proposed budget is slated for June 13.
Also at the May 23 meeting, the City Council approved an application for the Community Oriented Policing Services, or COPS, Hiring Program Grant for $1.1 million. The money would be used to hire nine full-time officers. The city would be required to provide a minimum of 25 percent matching funds.
However, the city plans to provide a match of $2.7 million from the general fund over the four-year program period for a total of $3.8 million. Roswell police spokesman Tim Lupo told the Herald in a May 24 email the Police Department currently has 146 sworn officers and 11 vacancies.
“The greatest difficulty we experience with our recruitment efforts is owed to one of our strengths: we maintain very high standards that we won’t compromise,” Lupo stated. “In 2021, we hired just 3.5 percent of our applicant pool.”
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At the meeting, the City Council also approved a resolution to apply for the U.S. Department of Justice and Bureau of Justice Assistance’s fiscal year 2022 Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant for $24,864.75. The funds will go toward replacing out-of-date, expired vests over the next two years as well as new vests for officers the Roswell Police Department anticipates hiring.
The city would be required to provide a 50 percent match of up to $49,729.50, bringing the cost to $994.59 for each vest. According to the city, the matching funds are available in the police department’s Machinery Equipment Operating budget.
Lastly, the City Council approved a contract with Killer Creek Harley-Davidson to purchase 10 FLHTP Electra Glide Police Motorcycles with custom up-fitting for $304,595.
The fiscal year 2022 mid-year budget amendment will appropriate $300,000, and the additional $4,595 will be transferred from the city’s Capital Contingency account. Staff will surplus the existing police motorcycle fleet using the option that will give the city the best financial return at the time of disposal, either through online public auction or direct sale to Killer Creek Harley-Davidson.
The dealer was the sole bidder for the replacement project.
