ELIZABETH — People in Wirt County were concerned about the closing of the West Virginia State Police Detachment in Elizabeth.

Around 100 people attended a public meeting earlier this week at the Wirt County Courthouse in Elizabeth where West Virginia State Police Superintendent Colonel C. R. “Jay” Smithers addressed the plan to close a number of rural State Police detachments.

State Police recently announced the closure of the Hundred Detachment in Wetzel County, the Grantsville Detachment in Calhoun County and the Elizabeth Detachment in Wirt County, all effective Jan. 1.

State Senator Donna Boley, R-Pleasants, initially called for the meeting along with the Wirt County Commission.

Boley said the cuts were part of a 2 percent cutback recently ordered by West Virginia Governor Earl Ray Tomblin. State lawmakers have been talking about how the state is facing a $300-$400 million budget deficit in the next fiscal year.

Officials said there were already around 27 unfilled posts that have been voided, Boley said, adding another 37 unfilled positions were also being cut. She said none of the four troopers from the Elizabeth detachment will be losing their jobs, they will be brought into the Wood County detachment and will continue to patrol Wirt County along with other troopers in the detachment.

The three detachment closures will save around $62,000 annually, Boley said quoting Smithers.

Without those detachments, other departments and state police detachments will be covering those areas.

The Hundred Detachment’s area of responsibility will be covered by the Paden City Detachment. The Grantsville Detachment’s area of responsibility will be covered by both the Clay and Glenville Detachments. The Elizabeth Detachment’s area of responsibility will be covered by the Parkersburg Detachment.

The Calhoun County Commission called a special meeting Monday and passed a resolution to oppose the closing of the Grantsville detachment. They took issue with not being notified directly by the West Virginia State Police, the short time period to the closure and the public safety issues it brings to all three areas.

“The Calhoun County Commission unanimously opposes a plan by the West Virginia State Police to target the closure of the Grantsville detachment, in addition to Elizabeth and Hundred,” the resolution said. “…we primarily object to the closure because of our concerns for the public safety of our citizens, response times up to 40 miles from the nearest detachments.

“…we beseech the West Virginia State Police and WV legislators to reconsider the closures.”

Other rural detachments around the state may be facing closure as well, Boley said of information provided at the meeting.

Wirt County Commissioner Robert Lowe said many residents in Wirt County are worried about losing police coverage.

“The public does not want to lose the detachment in Wirt County,” he said.

Lowe said officials with the West Virginia State Police presented the plan to cover the area as “District Scheduling” which people were told would provide better coverage with troopers available on all shifts. If there is someone on vacation or out for other reasons, the void will be made up with other troopers from the Wood County detachment. Residents were told there would be someone in Wirt County 24/7.

Lowe said there were a number of people and local officials who would hold Smithers to that.

Wirt County Commissioner Bob Gunnoe said many will being taking a “wait and see” approach to judge this plan’s effectiveness.

“I wish they had a different plan, something better than closing the detachment,” he said.

There was no data presented to show there would be any real savings from this plan, especially after figuring in travel time and vehicle maintenance, Lowe said.

Wirt County resident Jim Lydon said the officers in the Wirt detachment were part of the community.

“We don’t want to lose that,” he said.

Many people are still trying to determine how the new regional model of coverage works.

Also, many residents just like having the troopers’ presence in the county, he said, adding people liked having a place to go to to talk with officers if there is a concern. Residents were told that officers can come to them in some cases.

Lydon thinks some people will end up having to go to Wood County to discuss concerns in person.

“I wish there was some way to have an office to go to be able to discuss things,” Lydon said.

He appreciated Smithers coming to Elizabeth to discuss the situation with residents. Lydon also said he knows the State Police is doing the best they can with what they have to work with.

“The promise is we will get better coverage,” Lydon said. “If that is the case, it will be great for everyone.”

However, time will tell how well it works. The area is seeing growth and the need is growing for police protection, Lowe said.

The Newark sewer project is spurring development, around 30 townhouses in Elizabeth were recently constricted, the Ravens Building in Elizabeth was sold, the Food Mart was recently sold, the revitalization of the Spring Valley area and the new nursing home facility all require a greater police presence in the area.

“The county is growing and people are concerned we won’t have police protection,” Lowe said.

Delegate-Elect Ray Hollen, R-9th, of Wirt County, said he understands the financial position the state is in, but said public safety and police is the last place the state should be making cuts to.

He had hoped the West Virginia State Police could have waited until early February when the West Virginia Legislature will be back in session to see if there was anything the legislature could have done to find a solution to this situation.

“A lot of citizens approached me and said they have big concerns over service,” Hollen said.

In the past, if troopers were unavailable in Wirt County there was usually long response times if the troopers were coming in from Wood County.

“It may not work as well as they believe, especially if the trooper is busy in Wood County,” Hollen said.

Officials said the town of Elizabeth passed a measure that would allow the town to hire a police officer to help with policing efforts.

Elizabeth Mayor Penny McVay could not be reached for comment Tuesday.