Police pct. plan sent to full Legislature

Richard Tedesco

Nassau County Legislature committees sent Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano’s police reorganization plan to the full Legislature on Monday after a rally by residents and police against the proposal to convert four of the county’s eight precincts into “community policing centers” in an effort to save $20 million.

The nearly 200 residents and police gathered outside the Theodore Roosevelt Executive and Legislative Building carried banners reading “Don’t Cut Our Police Precincts” and “Precincts Save Lives.” The protestors helped to fill the legislative chamber, but few got a chance to speak during the four-hour session.

At the conclusion of the hearing, the Republican-led legislative committees voted 4-3 along party lines to move the proposal for consideration to the full Legislature on Feb. 27. The proposal will need 10 votes from the nine-member Legislature. All Democrats have already expressed opposition to the plan.

Acting Nassau County Police Commissioner Thomas Dale drew catcalls and comments from members of the audience during his presentation of the plan to the Legislature’s rules committee.

Dale didn’t depart from the plan he and Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano outlined two weeks ago: four police precincts to be closed and merged into the four remaining precincts, with 100 police and civilians administrative posts to be eliminated and 48 cops to be back on street duty or manning community policing centers while 177 patrol cars continued to roll.

Among the four precincts slated for downsizing is the 6th Precinct in Manhasset, which would see many police of its police functions taken over by the 3rd Precinct in Williston Park. Village mayors in Great Neck have expressed opposition to the plan, citing a threat to public safety.

“Let me be clear on this: public safety will not be compromised. This is about efficiency,” Dale said in his remarks, echoing Mangano’s original message.

Dale said the prospective realignment “would increase the flexibility of the department by allowing more officers on the street.”

Audience members kept up a steady patter of comments in the Legislature meeting room while Dale, Deputy County Executive Rob Walker and First Deputy Commissioner Thomas Krumpter attempted to explain aspects of the plan and answer questions from legislators.

Explaining how new technology had transformed the county police department, Dale said, “The patrol cars are like floating station houses.”

He response drew a “Yeah, sure,” and other similarly skeptical comments.

Dale reiterated Mangano’s assertion that cutting 100 jobs from station houses – 87 police and 13 civilians – would save the county $20 million annually.

Dale’s assertion was challenged on Friday by a memo from the Office of Legislative Budget Review issued that said the debt service expense to bond the liability of termination costs would reduce the projected savings in 2012 to $12.2 million. Factoring in unemployment costs if layoffs are implemented, the memo projected savings at $9.3 million in 2012 prior to the debt-service offset. The Office of Budget Review report also said that with a quarter of the year already passed, salary and fringe savings will have been diminished to $14.4 million.

James Carver, president of the Police Benevolent Association of the Nassau County Police, also questioned the county’s projected savings and its assertion that public safety would not be harmed.

“They’re trying to say this is a planned $20 million. Their math is wrong. Compromising public safety for $12 million should make the public scared,” said Carver, who was among the participants in the protest before the hearing.

Carver said the county plan didn’t factor in how reduced administration staff in half the previous number of precincts would adversely impact the ability of police officers to respond when needed.

“The worst part of this is they’re trying to turn this around to show that police response time is going to be the same,” Carver said. “We’re short-staffed to begin with. You’re going to have half the number of officers handling this.”

Walker presented a timetable for the precinct makeover, starting with the 2nd and 8th precinct realignment, which he said would take 30 days to implement. Realignment of the 3rd and the 6th precinct would follow and take approximately 60 days, followed by the 4th and 5th precincts in a 30-day period and the 1st and 7th precincts, also projected to take 30 days after that.

Krumpter said it is an “ideal time” for realignment because five of the eight precinct houses are “in very bad condition.” He said part of $15 million in repairs already committed to the 1st Precinct could be applied to other precinct houses.

Democrats on the committees criticized the plan.

“At the end of the day, by my calculations, we’re talking about 2,000 years of experience being off the police force. At what price is it no long worth doing this?” said Nassau County Legislator Wayne Wink (D-Roslyn). “Right now, we’ve got a lot of people in this county scared.”

Wink presented letters from officials in Manor Haven, Kensington, East Hills and Lake Success in reaction to the plan.

Nassau County Legislature Public Safety Chairman Dennis Dunne (R-Levittown) had resisted a call from Democrats to permit members of the public to speak first, directing Dale, Walker and Krumpter to make their presentations and answer legislators’ questions prior to public comment. Residents gradually left the hearing and less than a dozen spoke.

“Don’t pick on the police department and the military. Don’t you know that?” said Franklin Square resident Karen Martin who lives in the 5th Precinct.

Martin, who identified herself as a conservative Republican, said she would get a gun license and “police my own house.”

Share this Article