Cortland uses levy money for public safety services

Fire and police departments purchase new equipment

CORTLAND -- In the Nov. 3 election, residents of Cortland voted for levies that would benefit the fire and police departments.

In little over a month, the departments are already making good on their promises.

When speaking on the police levy, police Chief David Morris said the most pressing need for the department is to hire another full-time officer and on Dec. 1, Julie Bevilacqua was promoted from part-time to full-time.

Staffing issues was a huge problem compared to neighboring communities. In an Oct. 7 letter, Morris drew comparisons to similar-sized area communities and stated those departments staff between 12 to 20 full-time officers. Cortland has 11 full-time officers, including Morris.

The money also is being put to good use with the purchase of new equipment. At a Dec. 21 city council meeting, legislation was passed that would allow Morris to purchase four police radar units.

The new radars will be purchased at $2,400 per radar, with the fourth being free.

"There's an immediate need for three new radars and we will have a need for the fourth in the future. It's the smart thing to do financially," Morris said.

He also said there is a plan in the future to purchase a new vehicle, but a committee is working on a plan for regular rotation of the vehicles to get as much out of them as possible.

FIRE

Switching to the fire department, one of the most important needs outlined by fire Chief David Rea was a new truck to replace a 27-year-old vehicle.

The approved levy for the fire department is a capital improvement levy, which means only certain items can be purchased, Rea said. Some of those items include fire station renovations, possibly a new fire station, new equipment and, most importantly, the new truck.

At the same meeting, legislation was passed allowing the department to purchase a custom-built truck.

"It's going to be built from the ground up," Rea said at the meeting.

The department should get the truck in January or February and will cost a little over $589,000, Rea said.

In the near future, the department could be getting a new fire station as well. Rea said he would like to break ground on a new station in five years or so.

The current station, which was built in 1949, is in poor condition despite renovations.

"This was never intended to house full-time staff when it was designed," Rea said. "We had to find room for these guys to sleep and have down time before the next call."

nhawthorne@tribtoday.com