City set to hire two more police officers

By PHIL MONSON
Humboldt’s police department is expected to grow with the hiring of two officers in the coming weeks.

During the Humboldt City Council meeting on Monday night, Dec. 2, Humboldt City Administrator Cole Bockelmann and new police chief Jacob Miller reported interviews with three candidates on Nov. 22 went well with the city extending offers to two of those candidates.

“We made two conditional offers to two people. One candidate was a certified police officer with 16 years of experience. He accepted our offer and is hoping to start later this week,” Bockelmann said. “The other one we hired is uncertified and he has to work through more of the conditions but has already passed some of the more difficult tests. He’s hoping to start by the end of the month."

“Things are looking really good there and I think we’ll have their appointments on the agenda at the next meeting and one of them will have started by then,” Bockelmann said.

“I think they are very solid candidates. One has a lot of experience with a lot of credentials. The other one is brand new to this but is in it for the right reasons,” Miller said.

“I think these two are going to be ready for the challenges that await them,” Miller said.

Miller, who started on Nov. 18, told the Independent after-wards he would continue to recruit candidates to fill out the department to bring it to a full seven-person department.

Bockelmann reported the city continues to hold weekly meetings with FEMA officials in re-viewing the city’s needs after last summer’s historic flooding.

“We are at the point now where the engineers will scope out the projects so we can begin work on that phase,” Bockelmann said.

Read the full story in this week's issue of The Humboldt Independent.

Bockelmann also reported on a meeting he had with River Development Group leaders Gary and Dale Jensen on Nov. 26.