The dispatcher’s desk at police headquarters won’t be staffed nights and weekends, officials acknowledge.
A late-entry proposal from Little Silver to take over police dispatching duties won approval by Fair Haven’s council Monday night, the Asbury Park Press reports.
From the Press:
The
six-member council voted for a contract in which Fair Haven will pay
about $42,000 annually for Little Silver dispatchers to handle police,
fire and first aid calls now answered by the borough’s own dispatchers.
The switch will happen July 1.
Council
members said the issue came down to trying to save money for taxpayers
in one of the few areas of the budget where they control the costs.
see a lot of long faces on first responders here. We don’t take this
lightly. We relied on the experts,” said Councilman Benjamin Lucarelli,
referring to Fair Haven and Little Silver police chiefs, who were asked
to research the change.
In
January, the council investigated outsourcing dispatching to the
Monmouth County Sheriff’s Communication Center. On Feb. 23, Little
Silver officials made a proposal, which Fair Haven officials had
requested. At that meeting, the council voted to have the borough
attorney draft a contract with Little Silver.
“This
is a very good solution to what we’re looking to do: provide localized
service at a fair price to taxpayers,” said Mayor Michael Halfacre. “I
thank Little Silver for that.”
Several
council members said while they preferred no change, contracting with a
neighboring town was preferable. Firefighters met with Little Silver
officials about operational issues, but they still had questions, such
as how response times to calls would be affected, said Jim Cerruti,
deputy fire chief.
“We
don’t want to see the residents of Fair Haven see a decline in the
level of service or response times,” Cerruti said after the meeting.
“There are always concerns on making a major change from what you have.”
