Metro East Sun

The Glen Carbon Village Board met on Jan. 24 and approved three items involving the Village’s police department.

Police Chief Todd Links spoke to the board about the department's needs, and one item was portable radios to be purchased from Motorola Radio for $15,800. This involves three new radios for officers that they carry on their belts whenever they are on their shift. The department has grown in size as the village has expanded, and the chief said this will help address the need for more gear as they add officers. This was included in the 2023 budget and approved by the Police Safety Commission.

“As our residential and commercial populations have grown over the past eight years, the number of our sworn officers have also grown from 20 sworn officers to 28,” Links said in the meeting. “So this would allow us this purchase or allow us to obtain additional portable radios and fully outfit our newly hired officers.”

Another request was for a speed trailer from All Traffic Solutions for just over $16,000. The police department currently has a trailer, but it has not been functioning for six months. The new trailer would be a high-tech model that could also function as a warning sign with programmable messages. Members of the village have voiced concerns about speeding, and the police department prefers to have the new trailer to alleviate these issues. The purchase would be made with DUI fund money or state seed money. It was approved unanimously by the Public Safety Committee.

“It’s got a lot of utility compared to the ones we’ve had in the past,” Links said of the requested trailer. He also noted that he wants to be responsible to the community in helping control speeding.

Another item discussed was the approval of an intergovernmental agreement for dispatch services. The village currently is part of an agreement with the Glen Carbon Police Department and Fire Department, the Maryville Fire Department and the Troy Protection District that allows them to share dispatch services. It also allows the departments to share capital and operational costs for the services. The current 10-year agreement ends in 2025, and the police department recommended continuing through the end of the agreement.