Winfield city officials will wait until later next month to interview the final candidates for police chief so that money saved by not paying a full-time chief will help offset funds lost to state budget constraints.
The city expects to narrow it’s list of chief candidates to five by next week but will hold off on starting interviews until the end of March, city manager Warren Porter said Monday. Originally, the plan was to have someone hired by then.
But now cities statewide are more aware of how budget shortcomings in Topeka will affect local budgets. Winfield officials know the city will lose about $60,000 in revenue it receives through the state’s special alcohol tax fund.
That money is split up in thirds and helps fund local park improvements and pay part of the expense of a school resource officer for the Winfield school district. The other third ends up in the city’s general fund.
City officials already had that money budgeted so cuts need to be made elsewhere to avoid a cut in programs or the laying off of an employee or two.
"Short term it’s what we need to do to compensate for the money we lose," Porter said. "Long-term we know now that we’re not going to have that money from year to year."
The delay in hiring a chief will save the city about six months worth of salary and benefits for a position that pays between $60,000 and $75,000 annually.
"So we won’t offset all the money we lose, but it’ll come close," Porter said. "For the short term it won’t change much for us to delay the hiring, of course it’s not something we’d want to do for too long."
The city has narrowed a group of dozens of candidates down to 12. That includes four internal candidates, at least some of whom Porter expects will make the final round of interviews.
A new chief will replace Jerry DeVore who retired in December. Brett Stone is acting chief until a full-time replacement is hired.
