Incline sheriff’s substation is not closing

Washoe County Sheriff Chuck Allen said Wednesday there’s no truth to the rumor he’s shutting down the Incline Village Substation.

Allen said effective Monday the substation will lose its resident lieutenant. That post will be transfered to the valley.

But he said the substation will remain in business staffed by a sergeant and four full-time resident deputies, the office support specialist as well as deputies assigned to Incline on a rotating basis to cover other shifts.

“That’s not to say they’ll never see a lieutenant again,” he said adding the substation commander is “kind of the face of the sheriff’s office up there.”

He said lieutenants, captains and even he will go to Incline when needed to participate in community meetings and other events.

Allen said the change is just one on a list of moves he has been forced to make to rein in a growing budget shortfall. He said by July 1, he has to reduce spending by an estimated $500,000.

“I’ve got to make some hard budget cuts because of the way the budget is tracking,” he said. “Overtime is bleeding immensely.”

Moving the lieutenant’s post down the mountain saves money because Incline duty comes with special duty pay to cover the high cost of living there.

Allen said last year, overtime costs were covered by salary savings from 30 vacant positions. Right now, he said, the department has just 11 vacant positions in a total staff of 727 including 424 sworn posts.

Allen said the biggest changes will come at the jail that serves not only Washoe County but Reno and Sparks police departments. He said he had to make a number of changes including moving three positions back off the streets to the jail. He also had to pull the roving deputy post from the courthouse.

Allen pointed out that, in many cases, he can’t control overtime — especially if there’s a significant event that requires a response.

He said he’s also going to have to start having non-injury accident victims file their own reports on line.

“I’m probably the biggest opponent to having civilians make reports online but, at the end of the day, I have to listen to the recommendations,” he said.