WEIRTON — City Council is taking the next step in upgrading the security measures at the Weirton Municipal Building.

Last summer, council agreed to the purchase of portable metal detectors, to be installed at the entrances of the city’s office building. During Monday’s Weirton Council meeting, they agreed to create the employee positions — and establish the pay rates – for the individuals to be hired to monitor the stations.

Council unanimously approved the first reading, Monday, of an ordinance which, if enacted, would create the new, part-time position of Weirton City Building Entrance Security Officer.

The position has a proposed pay rate of $18.50 per hour.

While the creation of the jobs isn’t final until approval of the second reading of the ordinance, city officials explained there have been discussions about the process of hiring the future security officers, with some candidates already targeted.

“There are a couple of retired officers who are interested,” Police Chief Charlie Kush noted during Friday’s meeting of the city’s finance committee.

City Manager Mike Adams, also discussing the issue at the Finance Committee meeting, said it is a process the city plans to move forward on quickly.

“It’s going to happen fairly soon,” Adams said.

In August, council approved a resolution directing the purchase of two sets of FMD Pro metal detectors and two ZKT Teco HMD 100 hand-held metal detectors, at a cost of $29,957.

Under the plans described at the time, one set of the FMD units will be located at the front doors of the Weirton Municipal Building, with another set on the lower level by the entrance to the Weirton Police Department.

Individuals entering the building will be scanned by those units, and, if necessary, the hand-held units will be used for additional security.

The following month, council began the process of enacting an ordinance restricting the possession of weapons within the Municipal Building and other city facilities, with exceptions for law enforcement or other first responders.