MARS — The Mars Borough Police Department will soon have new leadership.

During an executive session at a Mars Borough Council meeting on Monday night, the borough council hired Mark Lint of the Butler County Sheriff's Office for a position as full-time officer-in-charge of the department. He will take over for part-time officer-in-charge Lt. Beau Sneddon, who has led the department since 2019.

“I'm excited by council's decision in working on evaluating the needs of Mars borough having its own department, then looking at every option out there before coming to the conclusion of restructuring it for a new day,” Mars Mayor Gregg Hartung said in a statement.

Sneddon will become a regular part-time officer to manage both his roles at the Mars Borough Police Department and the Butler County Jail.

“It just seemed like it got busy enough that it really wasn't a part-time job,” Sneddon said. “It got harder for me to do the administrative duties, and (do them) during the evening. Those are two challenges that Mark won't have, since he will be full-time during the day. It just kind of made sense.”

Sneddon looks forward to being a patrolman again.

“It's a fun job, and it's a great town,” Sneddon said. “But administratively, there's a lot to running even a little department. Things get harder and harder, and need more and more time and attention.”

Heading into the leadership role, Lint plans to assess what the needs of the department are as a first task.

“I do have an idea of what they are looking for, and the prior officer-in-charge has been doing a great job as an administrator and as a leader,” Lint said. “It's a shame that he is vacating that position, but it's beneficial that I can move into that position and take over that role.”

Lint has more than 20 years of experience as a police officer with the Carnegie Police Department and has been employed as a part-time officer with the Franklin Park Borough Police Department. His most recent role has been as a part-time deputy with the Butler County Sheriff's Office. He also served in the U.S. Navy as a petty officer second class.

“I believe a lot can be gained through modeling, and I hope to encourage our police officers to continue to do a great job,” he said. “I'm really excited about the prospect of working at the Mars Borough Police Department. I look forward to it.”

Expanding coverage

Currently the Mars Borough Police Department is for the most part a part-time force. It has 11 part-time officers, who provide anywhere from 16 to 24 hours of coverage on any given day.

Hartung said the department has two main prongs of a plan to increase coverage in 2022: expanding the existing collaboration with Saxonburg's police department, which has continued since this past summer for special events, and, at some point next year, hiring a second full-time officer.

“We're looking at small departments how we can work together, both by using our personnel creatively and looking for ways to save money,” Hartung said.

Lint will most likely be sworn in during the first Mars Borough Council meeting in December, and between now and then, Hartung said, he will work with Sneddon to transition to the role.

“They have already been in conversation prior to last night, too, about how to work on things together,” Hartung said.