Glen Alpine leaders are working to maintain the town's current tax rate despite a proposed budget that would cut the amount of positions needed to provide the 24-hour police protection residents have long requested.

Being a police officer isn’t the type of job where you work a shift and clock out without thinking about it again until you clock back in.

One of the big accomplishments of Glen Alpine has been appointing new leadership in the police department and making headway to hire more officers.

Kirk Penley, the new police chief in Glen Alpine, presented an ambitious plan to the Board of Alderman aimed at restructuring the department for enhanced safety and community engagement. His vision includes increasing the number of full-time officers, improving compensation, developing workforce surveys and policies, and building relationships with local schools. However, the funding and cost implications raised skepticism among some town leaders, questioning the affordability of these changes.