North Bend’s new police chief, Mark Toner, is looking forward to trading stiff corpses for community policing when he steps into his new position this month.

Currently a sergeant with the Major Crimes Unit of the King County Sheriff’s Office, he was hired to replace the city’s current chief, Sgt. Joe Hodgson, who is being transferred to the department’s administration in Seattle.

The new position will give him more chance to interact with the community, Toner said.

The Major Crimes Unit, which deals with homicides and other serious crimes, covers over 2,000 square miles and rarely interacts with people more than once.

North Bend might have “smaller issues — maybe it’s a parking issue — but there’s more opportunity to interact” and develop relationships with residents, he said.

North Bend is one of 16 cities that contract with KCSO for their police departments. KCSO also patrols unincorporated King County, including Fall City.

Because North Bend contracts for its police department, county budget cuts won’t affect the number of deputies on duty in the city.

“I want the police in North Bend to be visible,” the 24-year veteran of the sheriff’s office said. Toner has worked as a KCSO detective and patrol deputy from White Center to Enumclaw.

A city’s police department should always be part of the community, especially in a rural area where police officers have more territory to cover, Toner said.

Open communication between the community and its police force is critical to effective law enforcement, he said.

He added that he encourages community members to bring their public safety concerns to the police department.

Four KCSO sergeants applied for the position.

“We were looking for someone who saw this as an opportunity to expand and try some new ideas” and would actively go on patrol, said Duncan Wilson, North Bend’s city administrator.

U.S. Representative Dave Reichert, R-Wash., had some advice for Toner.

“The most important thing in his success is to communicate with the community, walk down the streets, talk with people, keep the mayor and city council informed,” the former King County Sheriff said.