Emergency Personnel Worried About Proposed Dispatch Changes

Members of the Washington Township emergency services and residents packed the council chambers Wednesday night for the special council meeting called to discuss applying for grant money that could be used to fund shared dispatch service with the county.

Council Vice President Steve Cascio, a member of the shared services committee, explained that the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office has $100,000 in grant money that the township is eligible to receive. Officials would have to approve a request for proposal (RFP) to do a feasibility study for shared services and if the county approved, the grant money could be used for shared equipment and utilizing the county's dispatch service run out of Mahwah.

Officials are under a tight time constraint with the decision. Although the deadline has passed, Cascio said Prosecutor John Molinelli granted an extension for Washington Township, Westwood and Hillsdale. Those three municipalities recently .

Councilmen said they are not looking to consolidate or merge the township police department and are not considering police layoffs. They said they want to investigate all options and take advantage of any grant money that they can. Officials said even if they receive the grant money, they wouldn't be obligated to use it if they decided shared dispatch with the county wasn't appropriate for the township.

"The top priority is public safety," Councilman Joseph D'Urso said.

Several residents involved in emergency services in the township expressed their concerns about using the county's dispatch services.

Fire Chief Chris Meier said that the draft proposal from the county created more questions than answers and asked how the council could have gotten a proposal without asking fire officials about their needs. Councilmen said since the proposal is a draft, it is a working document and they plan to address the concerns of emergency personnel before accepting any agreement.

One concern Meier and Assistant Fire Chief Jamie Powell both expressed was that the county dispatch would not monitor activity of the road department, which they said is essential during emergencies like hurricanes and snowstorms.

"It's the fourth leg of emergency services that's not being addressed," Powell said.

Cascio said they would discuss that issue with county personnel.

"We're not going to save money and put lives in jeopardy," he said.

But resident Dan Loftus said he worries that's exactly what will happen. He said when the Interboro system went to the county dispatch system, the average response time was eight minutes. He said eight minutes could be a death sentence to a police officer or someone having a heart attack.

"One of the problems I have is you're putting dollars and cents ahead of lives," Loftus said. "If you go to the county, they have a bad track record."

Detective Sgt. John Calamari, who is also a PBA representative, said the department provides services for the residents for less than $1,000 per household annually. He asked officials to investigate all their options with regard to saving money and consider keeping local dispatch, which he said many believe to be a worthwhile, personal service.

"Your job is to look into every possible penny that you can save and I applaud you for that, but please be careful where you save it and please be careful what you save it on," Calamari said. "Washington Township right now is the best. Let's stay that way."

Mayor Janet Sobkowicz said she shared some concerns, pointing out that the county dispatch did go down during Hurricane Irene.

"I am a little bit leery of the county," she said, adding she would try to investigate some of the rumors she has heard.

The mayor also said she wanted to form a committee to further investigate issues. Ideally it would include two members from the , two from the , two police personnel, two or three residents and two councilmen. She asked anyone interested to let her know.

Assemblyman Robert Schroeder, a Washington Township resident who is also a member of the fire department, asked that officials confirm the grant will cover shared dispatch and isn't just for consolidating or merging police departments.

"I don't think the residents in the Township of Washington are looking for any change in the service they receive now," Schroeder said.

No decisions about the grant application were made Wednesday, partly because Township Attorney Kenneth Poller was not in attendance and had not completed the RFP. Councilmen said they hoped he would have a finished draft ready for the next meeting, scheduled for Tuesday.