DISQUS

Allen · 2 years ago

Apsen's PD Issue Good question about Delta and Aspen. I think the first key difference is that we're talking about applications for one job - PD chief - versus finding multiple peace officers in Aspen. I don't know if anyone's ever conducted any polls to find out how true it is but to me there seems a large portion of cops out there interested in being a chief in a small community for a variety of reasons. Throw in the location and decent pay for such a small community and it should be no surprise Delta's had plenty of interest.

In the case of Aspen, I suspect it's the same housing issue that plagues so many growing mountain communities. What is the starting pay in Aspen for a peace officer? $17 / hr? $22 / hr? $27 / hr? It doesn't strike me that it would be easy to find housing that would make it easy to get by on those wages. There could also be some issues more specific to Aspen. It could be that a lot of young officers want to go to bigger departments to have more opportunity for advancement. It could be that Aspen has a bad reputation as a place to work, at least in terms of being a cop.