whetton profile 3/7/01

POLICE COMMISSION CANDIDATESPaul Whetton: Twenty-five years experience in town governmentDaisy CabralCONWAY It's deja vu all over again for Intervale resident Paul Whetton. After holding the post of police commissioner from 1986 to 1992, Whetton was appointed to the commission again last year when Jim Yeager Jr. retired. Now he is running for re-election against two of the same candidates who had applied for the seat with him last year.Whetton, 66, was hand-selected by police commissioners last year from a field of six candidates, but he will have to win over the voters this time around. That shouldn't be too much of a stretch though, because Whetton has already served as selectman for seven years and planning board member for six, with two years as planning board chair. In addition, Whetton has served as a budget committee member, and his time in different elected positions spans 25 years. This gives him plenty of experience to draw from if elected next week. "I've been here long enough to appreciate the needs of a police department," he says. His agenda is short and focused, and Whetton says he sees two main areas that the commission should be working on.One is additional traffic control. "The police department has proven itself to be very effective in solving crime, and they're to be commended," he says, but points to traffic control as an ever-present need that the commission must address, and believes that expanding the police department to include permanent traffic controllers is the answer. "My ambition is to see a traffic control division," he says, and pointed out that the seasonal, part-time approach to traffic control is insufficient. "We need to recruit some of these young people to be at the ready year-round." He pointed out that the traffic control positions are also a good first step for anyone considering a career in law enforcement. Another key focus for Whetton would be the police budget, which hit $1.6 million this year. Whetton attributes part of the rising budget to increased costs of police equipment, but says he's uncomfortable with the budget's growth over the last couple of years. "I'd like to make sure we don't continue that rate of increase," he says. "It's a big increase."He sees labor relations as an additional concern, and takes the commissioners' role as negotiators seriously. "This is always an issue that is difficult," says Whetton, but feels confident that he can take an active role in guiding the police department through its yearly negotiations. After 30 years in the manufacturing business, Whetton retired in 1991. He lives with his wife of nearly 40 years, Joan. Together they have three children and six grandchildren.