May 6, 2009 2 min read

CALIFORNIA – At a recent special meeting, council unanimously voted to use $9,000 from a $20,000 federal grant to implement a K-9 unit in the borough. The grant from the Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Assistance will be used for purchasing and training a K-9 unit. According to council, the dog will be purchased from Uniontown police officer Mike Garrow for $4,800. The vehicle insert would cost $1,500 and the various K-9 equipment would cost $500. Narcotics training for the dog, which lasts four weeks, would cost $2,000 and the patrol training, which lasts six to seven weeks, would cost $2,500.

The borough is not sure where the extra funds will come from to fully implement the program. Police Chief Rick Encapera mentioned that there is a lot of community support for the K-9 programs. Through group efforts and donations, he believes that California can support the K-9 unit. Charleroi recently had a fundraiser for their K-9 unit, raising around $4,000.

Three existing California officers showed interest in training with the dog. In order to ensure that the best possible match is made, a panel of trainers will interview the candidates and decide who is best suited for the program. One of the candidates, Officer Tracy Vitale, already has a K-9 dog at home because her husband is the K-9 officer in Monessen.

Council also voted to pay for new service windows within the borough building in zoning, administration and the police department. The new windows will have speaker holes and will be framed in aluminum. Fay West Glass gave the borough a price of $1,015 if framed in aluminum. Council approved the cost.

In other matters, Mayor Casey Durdines informed council that he would be applying for a Justice Assistance Grant. The grant would be for $9,000 and would be used to purchase a new police vehicle as well as update the video surveillance system monitoring the premises.