The police force will not be able to expand its forces to include designated foot-patrol officers in the business district because of a lack of funds in State College Borough's 1990 budget.

The budget allows for four new officers to fill vacancies on the force. But a request for six additional officers was denied.

State College Borough Police Chief Elwood Williams Jr. asked for more officers in his budget request last September because of "increasing demands for service." During the past three or four years, the number of calls for service has increased, Williams said.

Currently, most officers patrol the area in cars. Between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. an occasional officer is assigned to foot patrol and between the hours of 8 p.m. and 4 a.m. Tuesday through Saturday at least one or two officers are on foot patrol.

Of the 51 officers in the borough, none specifically are designated foot patrol or car patrol but are sent out based on the needs of an area at a specific time.

Williams said the additional officers would allow the force to increase the number of officers sent out on foot patrol.

Michelle Nicholas, personnel director for the borough said the request was denied because of the need to establish funding priorities.

"There is a limited amount of money available in the budget," Nicholas said.

Additional foot patrol in the downtown area would have acted as a deterrent to burglaries in the area, said Brent Pasquinelli, chairman of the Downtown Business Association. But group members are sensitive to the fact that the borough is facing an increasingly tight budget, he added.

"We could always use more police protection," he said.

Officer David Castar, associated with the local Neighborhood Watch program, however, said the denial for extra officers does not affect his group.

The decision to reject Williams' request would not have an impact on Neighborhood Watch because they operate in a residential area and not the business area, where additional officers would be patrolling on foot, Castar said.

Borough Manager Peter Marshall, who denied the addition of six extra officers, allowed for enough budget funds only to fill four vacant positions. State College Borough Council approved the budget in December.

Three officers resigned before this month and one officer is expected to retire next month, Nicholas said.

The hiring process for new officers may prohibit the vacancies from being filled until the end of the year, he said.

Current hiring practices require applicants to take a written test. Those with the top scores on the exam are then accepted as candidates for various other tests before a final selection is made.

Those chosen are trained for 12 weeks before they become certified police officers. The training sessions are scheduled to take place at the State Police Academy in Hershey this August.

Nicholas suggested an alternative hiring process in which the borough would hire officers who are already certified to the Civil Service Committee. This process would eliminate the 12 week training period, she said.

The committee had a legal question of Nicolas' proposal, and she and Williams are looking into the details. Williams said it would take about 10 to 12 days to research the question and get back to the committee.

"I think it's an idea that makes sense," Nicholas said of her hiring proposal. "It would save a lot of time."