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In a joint meeting of the Taylor and Snowflake town councils on May 2, decisions were made on the hiring of the new Snowflake-Taylor Police Chief as well as the signing of an agreement with the Show Low Police Department to run the Snowflake-Taylor Police Department (STPD) dispatch center.
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Taylor Mayor David Smith opened the meeting sharing, “We are having this meeting to show unity and work out any controversies we might have. We appreciate Snowflake and appreciate the council and staff being here tonight.”
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Police Chief Larry Scarber shared, “Early this year, the shared service committee convened to determine how they would search for my replacement. I got hired in 1979 and figured after 40 years, it was time for me to hang up my gun. My last day will be June 30.”
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After reviewing a number of applicants, the committee recommended Lieutenant Bobby Martin to the councils for approval as the replacement for Scarber.
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In recommending Martin, Scarber said, “Bobby Martin rose to rank of lieutenant in my department. He was also the first member of my staff to attend the FBI National Academy.”
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Mayor David Smith, who was on the committee, said, “Some of the comments that we got were that we did not do our due diligence on this and I have to say, ‘yes we did.’ Not only is Bobby the most qualified applicant, but he is a member of this community.”
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Taylor Vice Mayor Carl Cosper, also on the committee, shared, “Bobby told me, ‘I don’t expect you to pick me because I am a local guy; but I will accept whoever you pick as the new chief.’”
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The councils unanimously approved the appointment of Martin for the Snowflake-Taylor Chief of Police position upon the retirement of Scarber.
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Scarber also said that with the retirement of Senior Sergeant Daniel Rush, he promoted Officer Elijah Toth to the sergeant’s position within the department.
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The councils also unanimously approved the addendum to the Intergovernmental (IGA) Dispatching Agreement with the City of Show Low.
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Scarber noted that Show Low Police Department has been making some real concessions for the STPD dispatchers, who will only be required to pass the training provided in order to be employed. “Show Low is accepting our testing and our background vetting for our dispatchers.”
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When asked how many dispatchers from STPD would be able to apply, Scarber said that because of vacancies, “they will take everyone we have that can pass the training.”
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Scarber also said, “With the dispatch moving to Show Low, we will keep an office manager as we have to provide for our own warrants and do our criminal history reports as well as burn permits during business hours.”
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In other business:
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* The Taylor council approved a zone change for Assessor Parcel Number 205-32-122 from commercial to multi-family residence.
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* The Snowflake council approved the amendment to the Flood Control Project Funding IGA and the HURF (Highway User Revenue Fund) Exchange Pavement Project IGA with Arizona Department of Transportation.
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* Both councils approved looking into the cost and questions needed for a feasibility study to explore the possibility of bringing a hospital to the towns of Snowflake and Taylor.
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