Cicero, NY - Cicero Town Supervisor Judy Boyke wants to give taxpayers the chance to vote on whether to keep or get rid of the Cicero Police Department. Boyke tonight plans to recommend the town board consider a local law to abolish the Cicero Police Department — and put the department’s fate in voters’ hands. “This is not to...
View full sizeCicero Town Supervisor Judy Boyke plans to recommend the town board consider a local law to abolish the Cicero Police Department at 7 p.m. today at Cicero Town Hall, 8236 S. Main St., Cicero.
Cicero, NY - Cicero Town Supervisor Judy Boyke wants to give taxpayers the chance to vote on whether to keep or get rid of the Cicero Police Department.
Boyke tonight plans to recommend the town board consider a local law to abolish the Cicero Police Department — and put the department’s fate in voters’ hands.
“This is not to merge,” Boyke said. “Either we got one or we don’t. It’s going to be left up to the taxpayers to decide.”
The town would need to hold a public hearing before the board could vote on a law eliminating the police department.
Onondaga County Executive Joanie Mahoney — who has been a proponent of government consolidation — recently told town officials that Cicero should avoid the additional cost of a police department and rely on the county sheriff’s office and state police.
“You’ll see the savings,” Mahoney said in an interview with The Post-Standard. “Part of the reason is if you have a very small police department, if someone calls in sick, you may have to pay someone else overtime to fill that shift. With a bigger department, we have the ability to be more flexible with schedules.”
Cicero Police Chief Joseph Snell said the sheriff’s office could not provide the same level of personal service as his department. He said his department is fiscally conservative and focused on the community.
View full sizeCicero Police Chief Joseph Snell says his department is fiscally conservative and focused on the community. He opposes the idea of abolishing the Cicero Police Department. Snell has been the department's chief for the last 15 years.
“You’re only getting what you pay for,” Snell said. “You’re not getting proactive policing. You’re only getting reactive policing. You’re getting enough cars to answer the calls.”
Snell disagreed with Mahoney’s criticism that his department is too small to be flexible. He said, for example, he uses some part-time officers to fill in for full-time road patrol officers when they are on vacation or sick.
Cicero, home for nearly 30,000 people, expects to spend $1.69 million a year on public safety, for a police department with 12 full-time and 10 part-time officers. The department has on average 7.2 patrol cars on the road every day, the chief said.
Clay, which has nearly 60,000 residents, is the only town in Onondaga County that has merged its police department with the sheriff’s office. Since disbanding in 2008, the town has saved about $2.2 million, according to Clay Town Comptroller John Shehadi. The town expects to continue to save about $1 million a year, he said.
Clay residents used to pay $2.3 million annually for its police department, he said. The town now pays the county roughly $1.4 million to have two patrol cars in the town, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. That contract ends Dec. 31, 2012, according to the county executive.
Cicero could chose to pay the county extra money to provide additional sheriff’s department patrols. Here’s what it would cost if the town began contracting with the county in 2011:
• One deputy, from 7 a.m. to 3 a.m.; $656,659.
• One deputy, around the clock; $874,223.
• Two deputies, from 7 a.m. to 3 a.m.; $1,145,581.
• Two deputies, around the clock; $1,580,710.
If the town starts the contract in 2012, the costs would be higher. The final cost each year to the town could vary depending on the cost of gas, supplies and fringe benefits, including health and retirement costs, according to Jim Rowley, the county’s chief fiscal officer. Rowley was the Clay town supervisor when the town eliminated its police force.
Mahoney said she doesn’t think Cicero taxpayers need to pay for a town police department or any additional police protection than what the sheriff’s and state police already provide.
Mahoney noted that other towns, including Onondaga, Lysander and LaFayette, pay no extra taxes for the police services they receive. Some towns, such as Salina and Pompey, pay the county extra for traffic enforcement.
“The people in Onondaga are happy with the service and the people in Cicero are paying again to have their own police department. I don’t think it’s necessary when everyone is trying to reduce costs,” Mahoney said. “I would encourage residents of Cicero to ask other residents in towns that have no police department.”
Boyke said she wants the residents to decide what level of police service they want.
“The county executive is telling me we don’t need that much service (two deputies 24/7), but who can make that decision?” Boyke asked. “I’m not qualified to make that consensus. I want it to be up to the (residents) because it is the people of the town who receive the service.”
Catie O’Toole can be reached at cotoole@syracuse.com or 470-2134.