In about 20 minutes Friday night, what is left of Greenville council elected a new president and vice president, approved the 2003 budget and appointed a new police chief.

The four remaining council members and Mayor Clifford H. Harriger were at the meeting.

Council appointed Thomas Strahler as police chief, ending almost a year of uncertainty. Strahler had been serving as acting chief since Barry Williams retired from the post in February.

"At the beginning of the year, it was not a job I was looking for," Strahler said. "In the past year, the department has been through its toughest times. We're through the worst of it now."

Newly elected council President Pete Longiotti said council had wanted to make sure the other sergeants had an opportunity to apply for the position. Longiotti said the other sergeants were behind the decision.

New Vice President David P. Henderson said the decision had been delayed by confusion with the Act 47 plan. If council would have hired a chief from outside the department, Act 47 would have forced them to fire one policeman.

"We did not want to choose to hire out of the department," Henderson said.

Council accepted the proposed 2003 budget with no changes. Property taxes in the borough remain at the same rate, a total of 31.5 mills.

One change from this year is the distribution of the millage. While the rate remained the same, 21 mills in 2003 were set aside for general purposes and 10.5 mills were earmarked for indebtedness. This year, the general-purposes millage was divided into several levies, including separate levies for the police and fire departments.

A mill is $1 for every $1,000 of a property's 1970 market value. At 31.5 mills, a home assessed at $15,000 carries a tax bill of $473. One mill provides the borough about $39,000.

You can e-mail Herald Staff Writer Amanda Smith-Teutsch at: ateutsch@sharonherald.com