Crossing Guards, Public Safety Upgrades Made Ahead Of Westfield School Year

WESTFIELD, NJ — With the 2023-24 school year set to kick off in less than two weeks, the Westfield Town Council voted to improve safety on the streets with a number of actions.

The Town Council voted to renew an agreement for Crossing Guard Services for the Westfield Police Department, purchase solar-powered speed signs, and upgrade 911 dispatch consoles at the Aug. 15 meeting.

The Town’s contract with All City Management Services (ACMS) was once again renewed to oversee the school crossing guard program for a cost of $587,897 which will run from Sept. 1 through June 30, 2024.

For many years, Westfield had managed its crossing guard program through the Westfield Police Department, but in 2019, the town made a decision to partner with ACMS, based largely on its "reputation for high-quality standards and cost-effective solutions."

Councilwoman Emily Root praised the program at the meeting.

"It represents the better use of taxpayer dollars by enabling our police officers to prioritize law enforcement and emergency response rather than consistently serving as crossing guards and overseeing recruiting and retention efforts for the program," said Root.

Root noted that the Westfield Police Department previously filled crossing guard posts almost 100 days of the school year which was reduced to only 3 days this past school year.

Along with the crossing guards, a uniformed police officer will continue to direct traffic at the busy intersection of Dorian Road and Rahway Avenue, in front of the high school.

Mark LoGrippo of Ward 3 was the lone opponent to the contract renewal as his main concern was "with the number of posts that have been reduced over the past few years."

In 2022, the number of crossing guards was reduced by 10.

"My biggest concern is the intersection of Grove and Boulevard. With more and more people going back to work I hope the chief takes a hard look at that intersection," said LoGrippo at the meeting. "Not to sound dramatic but I've seen a couple of near-misses."

Councilwoman Linda Habgood noted that the crossing guard program is fluid and changes each year depending on the number of kids attending school and what intersections are being utilized.

"We work with ACMS to evaluate the needs and if we need to we can move resources around," said Habgood.

LoGrippo said he had received concerns from residents over the intersections of Grove and Boulevard and Boulevard and Clover. However, other sitting councilmembers said they were never passed on these concerns and encouraged LoGrippo to share them.

"We haven’t heard that. If you have those concerns. you should pass those along. Since it's concerning to everyone here," said Root.

LoGrippo insisted they were passed on.

Habgood asked that the concerns be passed along again, "Public safety is a huge concern particularly when it is with children and them getting safely to school."

Mayor Shelley Brindle also defended the program by adding that ACMS is removing some of the burden on the police department.

"I would argue that those police officers that used to be doing crossing guard duty are now doing police work and we are having a general enhancement of the public safety overall during the school year," said Brindle. "I think that can not be overstated about the importance of public safety of having that back."

Along with the crossing guards, the town council approved a resolution to purchase 10 solar-powered speed displays from All Traffic Solutions for $52,437.50.

The Council also approved a resolution to approve the payment of $394,724.40 for the purchase

of replacement MCC7500E dispatch consoles for its 9-1-1 Police-Fire-EMS dispatch center from
Motorola through Wireless Communications & Electronics.

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