BROOKVILLE — Council entered into a three-year agreement with Brookville Local Schools that will allow the continuance of the School Resource Officer program at the school.

The three-year contract will be retroactive to Aug. 1.

Keaton noted the SRO agreement between the city and the school district expired on July 31.

“I spoke with (police) chief Doug Jerome and school superintendent Jason Wood and both would like to continue with this program,” Keaton informed council.

Keaton noted Brookville schools and the city will each pay 50 percent of the SRO’s wages and benefits over the three-year period.

In other matters, council entered into a one-year contract with the Montgomery County Public Defender for 2024.

“ This agreement allows the county to provide legal representation to indigent adults charged with a violation of an ordinance of a municipal corporation for which the penalty or possible adjudication includes potential loss of liberty,” Keaton explained.

Keaton indicated the 2024 agreement is the same as the 2023 agreement with the exception of a 2.5 percent rate increase.

“The 2024 rate will be $192.79 per case,” Keaton said.

“To date, we have had zero cases in 2023. We had two cases in 2022 and zero in 2021,” Keaton noted.

In other matters, Keaton said the city recently purchased trees.

“I received a call from Vogel’s Nursery and they are going out of business,” Keaton said.

Keaton said all the nursery’s inventory was marked down 60 percent.

“So the city took advantage of that and purchased eight maple trees, one oak tree and five Norway spruce trees,” Keaton said.

“That was a good deal,” Keaton added.

Keaton said the trees were planted in various locations in the city’s parks.

Vogel’s nursery, located at 10290 Old Dayton Road in New Lebanon, closed after being in business for 50 years.

Reach Terry Baver at [email protected].