Safety first: City plan to recruit police officers is a good idea

The Goldsboro City Council on Monday night agreed to a plan that hopefully will boost the recruitment of good men and women to the city police department.

It's about time.

Many years ago we attended a city/county planning retreat at which participants were asked to rate the most important local needs. We suggested working toward making Goldsboro and Wayne County the safest place possible in which to live by paying police officers and sheriff's deputies well and arming them with the latest technology. The idea received little support. There was much more discussion of infrastructure needs such as water and sewer lines, new roads and improving educational facilities.

Fast forward to today, when violent crime seems to have a grip on the entire county, especially the city, and there is a growing sense that the most crucial part of bettering the local economy is by making this a safe place in which to live.

We applaud the city council's awareness of the need to emphasize public safety. All the roads, sewer lines -- and even good schools -- in the world won't convince businesses to locate here if they don't believe their employees will be able to walk the streets in safety.

Published in Editorials on August 17, 2016 10:38 AM