It is not every day that residents say they would be willing to pay more city taxes. But that was the case May 11 when several residents told Palmetto City Council the situation warranted hiring more police to patrol city streets.

Neighborhood Watch member Rene Huggins was one of several residents delivering that message to the mayor and city council.

“Having more cops is a priority,” Huggins said. “If it takes an increase in taxes I believe most people would be willing.”

Residents were insistent that the city’s current 14 officers were not sufficient to respond to current needs or the anticipated growth in the near-term future.

Mayor Clark Boddie said the council would be looking at law enforcement needs during upcoming budget talks. Increasing the number of officers, Boddie said, would also accompany the city’s growth in population. Whether the increases are in police, fire protection or other city services, Boddie said all those areas constitute growing pieces of the city’s fiscal pie.

“You figure out how big a pie you want,” Boddie told residents. “That pie is controlled from tax increases. It may take a tax increase to add more officers, unless we can identify further revenue as we did with the (Willow Oak Landfill) tipping fees (to help fund the majority of the cost of the fire department). We got the tipping fees at the same time we were setting up the fire department.”

Residents responded, agreeing with Boddie and continuing to insist that additional police are needed.

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