By Tim SchmidtRecord Managing EditorPart-time police officers in Wright City will see their first pay raise in two years.Aldermen, at the last board meeting on Jan. 22, unanimously approved a request from Police Chief Matt Eskew to raise the hourly wage from $11.75 to $12.50.Eskew said the wage increase will cost the city an additional $1,924, based on the number of hours worked by part-time officers in 2014. However, the police department will remain well within the budgeted amount of $36,000 approved for part-time wages.“In order to get a quality applicant, you have to be comparable to agencies around you with a part-time program,” Eskew said. “Our current officers are dedicated. We have a couple of guys who have been with us for eight years. They have not received a raise in the past two years.”The city currently has seven part-time police officers, to go along with 10 full-time positions. The part-time officers help fill shifts when the full-time officers are unavailable and provide additional manpower when community events are held, such as Strassenbash.This is the second year in a row $36,000 has been allocated for part-time personnel in the police department. In 2014, the city spent $29,951 on part-time officers for a total of 2,550 hours.Even with the wage increase, the city has 2,880 hours available for part-time officers.“We can sustain the increase and still allow 330 hours left over for additional manpower or for an unforeseen circumstance,” Eskew said.Wright City is one of four law enforcement agencies in the area that employ part-time help. The other municipalities are Hawk Point, Marthasville and Truesdale.Part-time pay increasing for Wright City cops