Police Chief Appointment, Blue Line Repainting On Holmdel Agenda

HOLMDEL, NJ — Police matters are on the agenda for the Holmdel Township Committee Tuesday night.

A resolution on a contract naming Acting Police Chief Capt. Frank Allocco as chief is scheduled to be voted on.

Allocco, who has been serving in an acting position since March 1, will be named chief retroactively to that date, according to a contract included with the agenda.

According to the contract, his salary is $194,929 for the period of March 1 to Feb. 28, 2023. His salary increases each year of the five-year contract, ultimately reaching $222,606 in year five.

A permanent police chief was to have been named in a special meeting Sept. 16, but there was no quorum of the Township Committee present.

There are currently only three members on the Township Committee, following the resignation for business reasons of Deputy Mayor Prakash Santhana on Sept. 16 and Cathy Weber earlier this summer. Mayor Greg Buontempo and Committeemen Rocco Impreveduto and DJ Luccarelli currently comprise the Township Committee.

Both the chief position and the township administrator position were being filled on an acting basis. William E. Antonides Jr. is interim township administrator. On March 28, the committee named Antonides as interim township administrator in addition to his current role as Holmdel's chief financial officer.

Also on the agenda is a resolution for the repainting of a "Thin Blue Line in Support of Monmouth County Law Enforcement” on Crawfords Corner Road from the intersection of Holmdel Road to Holmdel High School.

The painting of a line was approved in November 2016 by the committee, considered, according to the resolution "a universal symbol to law enforcement, used not only to commemorate fallen law enforcement officers but also to represent the shared commitment of all of those who choose to protect their communities."

The painting of the blue line created some controversy last year in Holmdel.

An ad hoc human relations committee was formed in 2020 and was considering a formal response to the blue line.

To some, the blue line represented support for law enforcement. Other interpreted it as representative of an "us vs. them" mentality that furthered tensions between police and citizens, according to previous Patch articles.

The human relations committee in May of 2021 ultimately did not make a recommendation on the issue and the committee has since dissolved.

Department of Public Works personnel would repaint the line in Marine Blue within 30 days of the adoption of the resolution, the resolution states.