Council voices approval for SRO agreement between city police, city school system
Bardstown Police Chief Kim Kraeszig reviews the details of the agreement between the city and Bardstown City Schools that will have a city police officer serve the school district as a School Resource Officer.
By JIM BROOKS
Nelson County Gazette / WBRT Radio
Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2018 — Bardstown Mayor Dick Heaton and members of the city council voiced their approval for the School Resource Officer agreement between the Bardstown Police Department and Bardstown City Schools at Tuesday night’s council meeting.
The Bardstown Board of Education approved the agreement at its meeting last week.
As part of the agreement, the school district agrees to pay $57,600 toward the SRO’s salary, which is figured on a school year of up to 187 days. The police department will absorb the overhead costs for the new position.
Police Chief Kim Kraeszig said the financial split between the school and the city will be about 70/30, with the school district paying approximately 70 percent of the officer’s salary and expenses. The city will be responsible for equipping the officer with police equipment.
Kraeszig told the council that when school isn’t in session, the SRO will serve as a regular city police officer.
According to Kraeszig, the school resource officer will serve as both a counselor and advisor, and serve as a positive role model to the student population. She said she plans to look within her police department for an experienced officer who might be interested in the position. The officer selected for the SRO position will also be required to undergo the necessary 40-hour SRO certification training. The school district superintendent or his designee will be involved in interviews with candidates for the position.
City Attorney Tim Butler announced Tuesday night that he intends to retire at the end of the year, and he intends to step down as city attorney on Dec. 1.
According to the agreement, the SRO will not be involved in enforcing the district’s administrative rules, including school rules regarding truancy, dress code violations and other violations.
Heaton praised Ryan Clark, superintendent of the Bardstown Independent Schools, for his willingness to work with the city in order to make the SRO position a reality.
In a related move, the council gave its initial approval of an amendment to the classification and compensation plan it approved last week. The change increases the number of full-time police officer positions from 27 to 28 in order to allow for the addition of the SRO position.
POWER OUTAGE. Heaton told the council that the city had not gotten a lot of details about Tuesday’s two-hour power outage that left most of the city without power. Kentucky Utilities, the city’s electricity supplier, lost power to lines serving most of its customers in Nelson County, including those in the New Haven area and the Woodlawn Road area.
Heaton said the problem was isolated to a location in LaRue County. Power was out for about two hours Tuesday morning, though Bardstown City Hall was operating on backup generator power.
CITY ATTORNEY TO RETIRE. City Attorney TIm Butler informed the council near the end of Tuesday’s meeting that he intends to retired Dec. 31, 2018. He plans to step down as city attorney on Dec. 1st, he told the council. The notice allows Heaton and the city time to locate another attorney to serve in that capacity.
In other business, the council:
— approved the proposed route for Foster Heights Elementary 5K walk/run planned for Oct. 27, 2018.
— approved a request from developers of eight building lots off Laurel Drive in the Maywood subdivision to provide water and sewer service once the homes are completed.
— approved a $1,000 donation request from the Bardstown-Nelson County Chamber of Commerce for Light Up Bardstown. Half of the money will come from the city council’s contingency fund, the other half from the mayor’s contingency fund.
NEXT UP. The council’s next meeting is its working session set for 5 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 2, 2018.
