During their monthly meeting on Aug. 16, the Sanibel City Council members addressed the content of a recent post on a local police union’s social media page and refuted the allegations contained within it.
On Aug. 9, Cape Coral Police FOP Lodge 33 posted the following on its Facebook page:
“The Sanibel Police Department needs your immediate support. Covid-19 has put a strain on all of us and our community over the last two years, particularly dealing with finances, retention, and recruitment of Police Officers.
When it comes to budgets and finances, the Mayor of Sanibel, Holly Smith, is attempting to have closed meetings without the Chief of Police being present, when he has always been present in the past, to discuss the future of the Police Department.
The Officers of the Sanibel Police Department have been and always will be dedicated to providing superior community service and a safe environment for all to enjoy.
As Officers, we risk our lives every day to make sure our Island and its residents are safe. We have had Officers infected with Covid and it has impacted our work force.
We are short staffed and are being overworked and have advised the City Council of this short staffing. The Island has seen a huge increase of vacationers and an uptick in calls for service.
The City Council has responded with pay studies, and has raised starting pay throughout the whole department, but refuses to address the bigger issues of the sustainability of the Police Department.
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