BY JOHN SNYDER
OF PASCACK PRESS
HILLSDALE, N.J.—The governing body agreed Jan. 15 to authorize the replacement of the dispatch desk console and related hardware at the police station in an amount not to exceed $256,045.55 in accordance with the state’s Cooperative Purchasing Program.
A separate resolution approves Murray Paving & Concrete of Paramus toward the desk in an amount not to exceed $62,193.57, in accordance with the Educational Services Commission of New Jersey.
Saying he believed that the dispatch desk has reached the end of its useful life, Mayor John Ruocco warned Nov. 8, 2018 that embracing a shared service for emergency communications is a matter of public safety and fiscal responsibility.
“A solution must be found in the near future,” he told the council and public.
Should Hillsdale continue maintaining its own dispatch facility it will need to assess hardware and software replacement options “and possibly reconsider staffing levels and salaries,” Ruocco told Pascack Press Nov. 9.
He said preliminary estimates of the additional costs of keeping dispatch in-house range from $325,000 to $1.3 million over five years, “depending on assumptions about staffing, salary and benefits.”
Moving to a shared service gives Hillsdale “greater depth of staff and technology and other resources,” he said.
He spoke to an estimated $1 million in savings over that same five years by outsourcing the service.
He emphasized that “a key factor in making any decision is to insure that residents do not suffer any meaningful reduction in response times or overall safety. Our present staff does an excellent job at delivering quality service, and any change would have to be fully assessed.”
Also Jan. 15, Police Chief Robert Francaviglia reported that in December 2018 there were 93 dispatch shifts, with one shift covered by sworn officers for overtime. All others were covered by non-sworn personnel.
Francaviglia also reported that in December his department handled 128 motor vehicle stops and 14 criminal arrests.
He added that, in December, he, Councilman Zoltan Horvath, and Capt. Sean Smith completed a Santa detail to raise funds for the Hillsdale Food Pantry. The effort netted the pantry more than $1,000 in cash and gift cards.
Francaviglia said he and officers Corey Rooney and Mike Camporeale, along with members of many other police and fire departments, attended the Pink Heals campaign in Hackensack, raising toys for Hackensack Meridian Health Joseph M. Sanzari Children’s Hospital.
Smith and Francaviglia attended a seminar at the Jewish Federation of Northern New Jersey in Paramus, hosted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office. The seminar focused on safety and how to protect Bergen County’s wealth of religious institutions.
Francaviglia emphasized that the area has been hit by numerous car thefts. He reminded the public not to leave their key fobs in their vehicles.