Sheriff shares updates with city council
COSHOCTON – Coshocton County Sheriff Tim Rogers told city council at its Nov. 9 meeting that his office is very appreciative of the new SUV that the city purchased for them.
“This is a direct result of the levy that the citizens passed,” he said. “The car it replaced was on its last leg and has been for quite some time. We also have a new deputy in limbo, but we need to see how the closing of WestRock is going to affect our contract (with the city).”
Mayor Steve Mercer said he anticipates having more information on how WestRock’s news will impact the city at the next council meeting.
Rogers also thanked the Skelton Family for stepping forward to help raise funds in an effort to replace the sheriff office’s outdated Tasers.
“This is very costly, but they felt it was a needed investment as do I,” Rogers said. “The Tasers we have are outdated and we can no longer get parts for them or get them serviced. They are a good compliant tool for law enforcement to use.”
In an effort to help the office reach its needed goal of $26,000, Jim, Bob and Joe Skelton from Pomerene, Burns and Skelton agreed to donate matching funds of up to $12,500. Anyone else wishing to participate with the funding of this endeavor may call the sheriff’s office at 740-622-2411.
Body cameras for officers also are coming.
“There is a push for legislation by federal and state government officials that all officers have them,” Rogers said. “I believe they are a beneficial tool and look forward to the opportunity to make policies on how and when we use them.”
Rogers believes the sheriff’s office insurance provider is helping to purchase them, but said data storage for what the cameras record is an expense they will have to budget for.
“I believe Muskingum County pays $27,000 for theirs and we’d be looking at $16-$17,000,” he said. “Some have the cameras turned on the minute an officer goes on duty and others just use them to record certain incidents. I believe there is a middle ground, but haven’t determined what that is so we will keep reviewing policies.”
At the meeting, Safety Service Director Jerry Stenner also shared that leaf collection in the city is going well. According to the tentative schedule there are still three zones in the city left to have their leaves pickup. Zone 4 is Nov. 16 – Nov. 20 and Nov. 23-24: South side of Walnut Street to city’s south corporation line, between Ohio Central Railroad and the city’s east corporation line. Zone 5 is Nov. 25, Nov. 30, Dec. 1-2: South side of Walnut Street to city’s corporation line, between Conrail Railroad and Ohio Central Railroad. Zone 6 is Dec. 3-4: Roscoe Village.
The city’s street department is asking residents to only put leaves on the curb strip prior to the corresponding date for each zone. Do not mix branches or limbs with the leaves as they can damage the leaf machine. Time allows for only one pass down each street.
“Everything appears to be going smoothly with this and the machine is running well,” Stenner said.
josie@coshoctoncountybeacon.com
Category: Government
