Nothing like diving right into some controversy this week. Can someone explain to me why they feel that Tyrone doesn’t need more full time police officers? This week I made several phone calls and did some research on other communities in similar size to Tyrone and found some interesting things. Understand I write this as the current Tyrone Police Department gets ready to begin arbitration, with one of the sticking points being the hiring of more full time officers. Let’s start comparing different departments in Pennsylvania and the amount of full time and part time officers to patrol their streets.
Punxsutawney’s population is slightly larger then Tyrone and it employs six full time officers including their Chief Bill Clement who daily also patrols. Punsxy also has five part time officers. Nearby Philipsburg on the other hand did away with their department, but does have a State Police barracks located there that handles patrolling their community. Mt. Union is smaller then Tyrone but employs more officers full time. I’ve had conversations with several of their officers and realize that while that area is smaller in population it seems to have a larger crime percentage then Tyrone thus justifying more officers. Another thing to take into consideration when hiring just part time officers is turnover. If you continue to hire them, train them, only to have them leave for full time positions in other towns it may turn out to be more costly in the long run.
What do the citizens of Tyrone think? They are the most important voice! Don’t let the elected officers make the decisions without your voice being heard. I invite anyone to go and just sit in the police department on a Friday and see what this department deals with. You actually expect one officer to deal with even a domestic dispute? I wouldn’t want to be that officer! In this time of our nation when we honor true heroes I only hope that someone doesn’t get hurt leading to a TRUE wake up call for the need of more officers in this community.
It’s beginning to happen! We welcome some new businesses opening in Tyrone including Street Styles and G.E.S. Clothing and Novelty Store opening soon in the old Bellon’s Music Store downtown. We wish these businesses nothing but success.
There’s nothing inspiring about driving a hour and half to work. My morning commute consists of listening to as many radio newscasts as I can. My trips home in the afternoon seem long and boring. One thing that will lift me will be the beautiful fall foliage that is beginning to appear. The mountains that surround this area offers some of the most beautiful views I’ve ever seen. I swear I was looking the other morning to see if the leaves had started to change only to see green. Then on the trip home I noticed different colors beginning to highlight the mountainsides. Maybe in hours they did start to make their fall progressions or maybe I was just asleep during the morning trip.
Have you ever noticed that Bellwood Borough goes about doing their business very quietly? And that Tyrone Borough is always caught in some kind of controversy? As Andy Rooney would say on “60 Minutes” Why is that? Are the two communities that different? Or is it a leadership issue? I know if I were running things I would set out to do one thing for sure, try to quietly get the business done so that Letters to the Editor would become a thing of the past.
There’s a new attitude at the Bull Pen Restaurant. I’ve been working alot with their new Kitchen Manager and if you’ve noticed in their ads in The Daily Herald they have a new menu with some incredible lunch and dinner deals. I can tell you that its one of my stops at least once or twice a week. I invite you to do the same and see the new attitude as well.
The Daily Herald is currently working on a special publication that will honor our local firefighters. National Fire Prevention week is coming up in October and this special piece will feature the nine local departments ranging from Pinecroft to Bald Eagle. As we continue to take photographs, you can call and reserve your advertising space in what will be one of our best pieces yet.
I finally feel human again after suffering back and leg pain during the first part this week. Our Godstock music festival proved to me again that I’m not a kid anymore. Last Saturday night after the event back home my wife and laid in bed and just screamed in pain. It proves again that just because you lose over eighty pounds and feel better, it doesn’t mean that your in shape. Have a good weekend! Go Tyrone and Go B-A!!
