GILL — Police Chief Christopher Redmond, who has served as chief in Gill since 2017 and has worked in the department for 33 years, has had his contract extended while also taking on a few new responsibilities.

In addition to police chief, Redmond will serve as assistant emergency management director and harbormaster.

The new contract is effective July 1, 2025 and expires on June 30, 2028. With these additional responsibilities, Selectboard Chair Greg Snedeker explained Redmond will receive a pay increase, with the contract outlining a yearly salary of $129,304. Under the previous three-year contract that took effect in 2022, Redmond’s salary was $98,000.

While Snedeker said he is not keen on pay rates for police going as high as they are, he said the contract will pay Redmond at a rate that is equivalent to what other police chiefs make in the state while retaining an experienced member of law enforcement.

“I will say that, and he knows this already, is that part of the frustration is the state passed new laws, and it’s requiring our police officers to be basically full-time and to go through that amount of training,” Snedeker told his colleagues on the Selectboard on Monday. “So it’s incredibly difficult to get part-timers, which means our supply of police officers is going down, which is driving up the cost.”

In a follow-up interview with Town Administrator Ray Purington, he said that the positions of assistant emergency management director and harbormaster are new titles. Former Gill Fire Chief Gene Beaubien still holds the position as emergency management director, and Redmond will join as an assistant, and his title as harbormaster allows the town to have a point person for anything happening on the river in Gill.

With this approved contract, Redmond will continue to serve full-time in Gill alongside Sgt. John Richardson and other part-time staff.

“We’re very pleased to offer him this contract,” Snedeker said, “and keep him with all his incredible experience.”

Erin-Leigh Hoffman can be reached at ehoffman@recorder.com or 413-930-4231.