MOUNT VERNON — The Mount Vernon Police Department honored its own for their dedication, outstanding service, and quick thinking in critical moments.
The department gave out five awards at its annual awards banquet on Jan. 30.
Officers Tim Arnold and Andreas Cotter received the Officer of the Year award.
“The Officer of the Year award is picked by the officers of the department,” Police Chief Robert Morgan said. “This year, we had two individuals who tied, so we gave out two awards.”
Officers Matthew McDonald, Jaqulyin Nauman, and Josh Perry received the Life Saving award.
The awards recognize the officers’ bravery and confidence in their skills during critical moments.
Morgan said one incident stemmed from a house fire where officers removed an individual from a house and started emergency care on him prior to the squad getting there.
Another was a car wreck involving a motorcycle. The officer applied a tourniquet to an individual’s leg to staunch severe bleeding.
Morgan said things have been quiet in the department. Officers responded to only two minor accidents during the Jan. 25 snowstorm.
“For the most part, people followed the sheriff’s office’s Level 3 advisory and stayed off the roadways to keep the plow trucks going,” he said.
However, the chief encouraged residents on snow-emergency streets to move their vehicles so snowplows can do their job.
“We had quite a few cars that remained on the snow streets, but we did not tow anybody. We made some individual calls to try to get some people to move some vehicles, but we did not tow anybody.”
The department continues to work on plans for the new Sychar Road station.
Code enforcement
City Inspector Scott Zimmerman thanked everyone who worked diligently to clear the streets, parking lots, and sidewalks during the Jan. 25 snowstorm.
“I do want to remind a lot of the businesses and citizens it is your responsibility to clean your sidewalks,” he said. “At least try to make it passable if you can.”
Zimmerman said he has received calls about Coshocton Avenue sidewalks and acknowledged it is difficult when plows move 12-plus inches of snow off the road and onto the sidewalk.
“As we get a few warmer days, hopefully, we can get these cleared up, because a lot of people do depend on the sidewalks to get around, especially out on Coshocton Avenue,” he said.
Zimmerman also thanked the citizens who support code enforcement and property maintenance.
“There ‘s been some people call and thank us for the work we’ve been doing. We’re trying to do this in the fairest way to implement the ordinances, like the one I looked at today, which has been on there since 2014,” he said.
Several people have asked about campers, boats, and trailers.
“There is a small part of that ordinance that we’re aware of that makes it very difficult if you don’t have a backyard or something like that to legally park your trailers and campers and boats,” Zimmerman said.
He encouraged residents to contact their council member, as the council will need to clean up the legislation.
He said the problem is that boats, trailers, and campers are encompassed in the “vehicle” terminology.
“What I would like to see done, and I’m sure council will be willing to work with us on this, is clean up the trailer, boat, and RV sections,” Zimmerman said.
Zimmerman said his office is happy when people respond and come in with questions after receiving a violation letter.
Other department activities
Zimmerman reminded residents of the upcoming dates:
•City tire cleanup: March 28 from 8 a.m. to noon at Ariel-Foundation Park. Charge is $2 per tire to help offset recycling costs.
•Citywide Yard Sale Trail: May 1 and 2.
•Countywide Spring Cleanup Day: May 9 from 8 a.m. to noon at Ariel-Foundation Park. SHARP CUTOFF OF AT NOON.
On the zoning side, Zimmerman encouraged citizens to call if they plan to construct a fence or enlarge their driveway.
Regarding FOG (fats, oils, and greases), the department is streamlining the permitting process and working with the fire department on range hoods.
Mount Vernon Fire Department
Fire Chief Chad Christopher said the department ended 2025 with 6,204 fire and EMS calls.
“That seems to be where we’ve been hovering at for the last couple of years, around 6,200, 6,300 or so. It kind of plateaued out, but it’s still a lot of emergency calls for a department our size,” he said.
January runs totaled 500.
The department held its awards dinner in January, with Jordan Crabtree, Lt. Nate Hines, and Kayla Carr receiving top awards.
The department also recognized former executive administrator Holly Bredefeld for her hard work and dedication.
Nick Cockrell was honored for his maintenance capabilities.
“Everybody can do the small things, but for the more complex ones, we dig into Nate’s expertise to keep our maintenance fleet going, so we appreciate all of his work there,” the chief said.
Christopher said Assistant Fire Marshal Ross Wynn has “hit the ground running” with business inspections.
“Once again, we’re just out there making sure the buildings are safe, not only for their building, but the buildings to the sides and front and back of their building, as well as the patrons that visit those building,” he said.
Ongoing projects include computer upgrades, interior painting, and new flooring installation.
The new medic’s arrival has been pushed back to the first of March.
Christopher echoed the police chief’s thanks for the city employees who helped open the roads and sidewalks.
“Thank you to all the other snow warriors that are out there with their snowplows getting parking lots cleaned. That was quite the snowstorm,” he said.
He also thanked residents for staying home. The department responded to only one car accident during the snowstorm.
It also provided mutual aid to Danville during the storm.