Thursday, November 30, 2000
Eliminate 'inefficient' division, says report
By LES G. MASTERSON
STAFF WRITER
In its Police Department report, Crest recommends eliminating the Community Safety Division, which is comprised of the Police and Fire departments, and turning it into two separate entities, and re-establishing chiefs for each department.
Arlington is one of the last remaining communities using the community service model.
Currently, the two men in charge of police and fire, Fred Ryan and Richard Maimone, are listed as directors of each department and the town manager is the official chief.
Crest called the combined department model "outmoded and inefficient."
"The structure of Arlington's Department of Community Safety is an aging relic that no longer serves any viable public safety purpose," according to Crest. "In fact, the existing Department of Community Safety model creates a negative impact within the department, and suggest to insider and outsider alike that the life-saving functions of police and fire services are less important to the community than many non-safety related town departments. This perception, enhanced as it is by an organizational model of inefficiency, should be corrected as soon as possible."
Selectmen Charles Lyons agrees.
"I do support the concept of an independent police and fire departments. Though I'm not supportive of civil service for the chiefs. I want the chief to have discretion and autonomy," said Lyons.
On this issue of training, Crest and Ryan agree - the department does not set aside the resources for proper training.
"The department lacks a cohesive strategy to deal with a myriad of training issues," Crest reported. "Until recently, virtually no commitment was made by the department to identify and to pursue financial resources for training, including grant opportunities on the state and federal level. This is a critical component of any public safety training strategy and its absence is a significant factor in the department's poor training record."
With that in mind, Ryan praised the department and lamented his lack of a training budget.
"The men and women of this Police Department do a very difficult job and - given the lack of quality training and other resources - they've done an outstanding job. The community survey reflects that," said Ryan.
However, Finance Committee Chairman Allan Tosti said training is an area that the town can improve without spending much money.
"There are a lot of things that can make some important improvements to the Police Department... We need to look at each individual item," said Tosti.
Regarding the recommendations, Ryan said the department is already working on seven, including creating a performance evaluation process, improving technological communications, increasing park and walk and bike patrols, continuing involvement in law enforcement regional partnerships and organizations, and setting up a permanent Strategic Planning Committee.
In addition, some of the problems mentioned in the report have been solved.
"Going back to the comments about the command staff, it's important for people to know that it was a lengthy process," said Ryan. "Some of those issues are old and we've gone beyond them."
Regardless, Ryan sees the potential changes as long-term goals and has already discussed Crest's assessment at roll calls and met with his staff.
"We're going to develop a long-range plan and strive for continuous improvement with the goal to provide the finest and most innovative police force in this region," said Ryan.