I heard that the City of Renton will hire 26 new police officers if the Fairwood area is annexed. Is this true?
While it’s true that the City of Renton said this in February 2009, the reality is that they have already been cutting staff across all their departments in anticipation of an $8-10 million budget deficit in 2010. Much has changed since the February statement by Renton. The city likes making a lot of promises to potential annexation areas, but the reality of annexation is vastly different. As one resident of the Benson Hill annexation area mentioned in January 2009 (Renton Reporter), “I hope that individuals considering a vote on incorporation analyze the reasons and realize that getting annexed will not necessarily improve their lot, rather it may worsen it.” In late October 2009, the City of Renton’s 2010 budget proposal is reducing city jobs by 35 people and cutting back on services. NO new police staff will be hired, in fact some police clerical staff will be let go, requiring existing officers to fill in on administrative tasks. In short, Renton will have no resources to spend on
Related Questions
- How many police officers patrol the City of Renton? How many patrol the Cascade/Benson Hill neighborhood and how many would patrol Fairwood if we chose to annex to Renton?
- I haven’t heard anything from the Renton city officials lately. Aren’t they interested in Fairwood any more?
- How many City police officers will be assigned to the annexation area?
