The Ypsilanti City Council Budget Committee heard from its police and fire chiefs Thursday night to hear the spending priorities for each department.
Both Fire Chief Ken Hobbs and Police Chief Kirk Moore made the pitch for more training programs, saying it has proven effective in community relations and staff job satisfaction.
Moore says it also has been a strong incentive in retention and recruitment efforts as he tries to fill police department vacancies.
“One of the things I’ve learned very quickly is that this next generation, they are attracted to different things. They are attracted to not just what can a job do for me, but what are the benefits?”
Moore says it also helps in preventing job burnout, which can be very common in law enforcement. He says while he could always use more officers on the streets, Ypsilanti is now in better shape than many communities in Michigan that are dealing with public safety personnel shortages.
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