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Executive Kathleen A. Donovan signed an executive order last Thursday directing the BCPD to provide patrol and ancillary police services around the clock, saying that she needed to do so in order for patrols to begin this Sunday.
The county Board of Chosen Freeholders originally tabled a rubber-stamp vote on the move earlier this month, saying more information was needed. The freeholders are expected to vote on it this Friday.
Teterboro doesn’t have its own police department. The Little Ferry and Moonachie police departments have patrolled the municipality since January 1996.
Little Ferry didn’t renew its deal, which, like Moonachie’s, expires Saturday. So the county stepped in.
Moonachie signed on for another three years, with a two-year renewable option at the end. The pact calls for Teterboro funding the cost of a new Moonachie patrol vehicle, in addition to a contract fee of more than $300,000 per year.
Under the agreement with the county, Moonachie continues to cover the east side, while the BCPD takes over for Little Ferry north of Route 46.
Records show that the Bergen County Police currently station officers in Teterboro at that end of town: They’re at the county animal shelter, the Teterboro Vocational School and along parts of Route 46. The BCPD Bomb Squad provides protective security for dignitaries arriving and departing Teterboro Airport — which included a visit to New York City by former President George W. Bush in late fall, as CLIFFVIEW PILOT has known.
The opening of a new Juvenile Detention Center north of the highway will bring even more coverage to the tiny municipality, county officials say. The new agreement simply guarantees 24/7 coverage by at least one officer.
“This is a logical progression for the County Police to expand their presence in Teterboro,” Donovan said. “We will also be generating revenue for the County which will cover our costs and save money for the taxpayers of Teterboro.”
The cost will be defrayed by the amount of fines generated by summonses county police are expected to write, she said.
Under the state Uniform Shared Services Act, a municipality can seek and approve such a move in tandem with a county executive.
It’s then up to the legislative branch of the particular county to include the service as part of the annual budget — or not.
Donovan’s executive order specifically notes that Gov. Christie’s Administration “is committed to and endorses the sharing of services between local units as a way of easing municipal budget restrictions thereby expanding municipal resources and reducing local expenses.”
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