Police chief wants to bolster supervisor force
Published on June 4th, 2008
STONEHAM, MA - Stoneham Police Chief Richard Bongiorno pitched a bold command-and-control reorganization plan Tuesday night that would bring aboard four new supervisors.
During the Board of Selectmen meeting on Tuesday night, Bongiorno unveiled a multi-year proposal that would phase in one new police lieutenant and three sergeants.
The Chief of Police also requested that the detective bureau be reorganized, that a part-time clerk be hired to manage and maintain the department's records, and that new software be acquired that allows reports to be filed electronically from cruiser laptops.
According to Bongiorno, while he recognized that the department's patrol force had been significantly downsized in recent years, the limited number of on-duty supervisors during each shift seriously undermined the department's organizational structure.
Currently, the Stoneham force has two lieutenants and five sergeants.
"It certainly appears that I'm putting the cart before the horse here," said the police chief. "If we could have five more police officers, then you'd be able to justify more supervisory personnel."
"We're trying to bring about accountability through control points. And I hope to do that through supervision," Bongiorno later explained. "Every officer will report directly to a supervisor, so we will have that direct chain of command."
Despite the town's somewhat precarious financial state, several Selectmen appeared open to Bongiorno's suggestion. According to Selectman Paul Rotondi, the plan could be crafted in a flexible manner, so that certain staffing posts could be added as the town saves money through retirements.
Rotondi later suggested that Town Administrator David Ragucci may be able to negotiate an early retirement incentive to ensure that higher paid veteran officers can be replaced by lower paid counterparts or new hires.
According to rookie Selectman Richard Gregorio, while that idea generally seemed appealing, it would tack on costs to the retirement system, as employees who retire early under such incentives haven't made a full contribution.
"The glass is empty instead of full," Gregorio commented. "We're paying someone money to go into a retirement system that's hurting us as it is."
Bongiorno later revealed that he would likely have funding to bring on three additional officers onto the force. However, the police chief did caution that some of that funding would be reliant upon federal grant money, which has dried-up and led to layoffs in years past.
Bongiorno also maintained that hiring additional supervisors would shave significant overtime expenses from the police budget. Citing an example, he claimed that over $18,000 could be saved just by reducing the overtime associated with one nighttime supervisor.
Selectman Frank Vallarelli, who also seemed receptive to the plan, later asked that the chief submit a list of the three new hires before the town moved forward.
"The concern I have is with the number of patrolmen on the street right now. The supervisory officers will be a little top-heavy," Vallarelli said.
The police chief plans to place several of the new supervisors on the street, alongside the patrol force. He also wants the new lieutenant to serve the dual-role as overall supervisor and grants writer.
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