A longtime Hanover Police officer will take over the helm of the department next month when its chief retires.

Veteran Dwayne Smith will replace Randy Whitson as the borough police chief when Whitson retires in early February.

Whitson has been with the department 37 years. For seven of those years, he has served as police chief, said Barbara Krebs, the borough manager.

His last day is Feb. 3, also the day when Smith will become chief.

Losing a borough employee with nearly four decades' worth of experience will be tough for the town, Krebs said.

"As always, it's hard to lose someone who has been on staff that long and has that kind of knowledge," she said. "If I could have kept Chief Whitson, I would have kept Chief Whitson, but everybody has to retire sometime."

New chief: However, Krebs said she's confident that Smith is the man for the job of top cop.

Smith is a 23-year veteran of the department and worked closely with Whitson.

Smith rose through the ranks and most recently served as a lieutenant.

The borough council selected Smith as the next chief after an interview process and formally voted on his appointment recently, Krebs said.

Krebs said she thinks council members selected the best candidate for the position.

"Even though we're losing a veteran like Randy, I'm confident in Dwayne because he worked with and was trained by Randy," she said.

-- Reach Greg Gross at ggross@yorkdispatch.com.