Freeport officials weigh options for police protection as pool of part-timers diminishes

The shortage of applicants for part-time police positions in Freeport is prompting council to reconsider its options.

For months, the borough has been advertising for part-time police officers to supplement its two-man, full-time force but with little to show for it.

Councilman Sean McCalmont said the situation is serious.

“We’ve got to do something,” he said at Monday’s council meeting.

Councilman Dino Digiacobbe, who works as a police detective in New Kensington, said the problem is widespread as interest in working as a part-time officer has apparently declined.

Putting in time and gaining experience while working as a part-time officer was a commonly traveled path for recent police academy graduates to eventually landing a full-time spot in a municipal department.

It worked for the municipalities who hired them because they were able to fill in holes in their patrol schedules and provide police coverage without having to raise taxes to pay the salary and benefits of full-time officers.

Now, as part-timers who are still on the job move into full-time police jobs, a dearth of aspiring young officers to take on the part-time jobs has developed.

“The next classes at IUP and the academy are half of what they’ve been,” Digiacobbe said.

Council members mentioned options such as contracting with other municipalities for police services and merging departments with other communities for a regional force.

“Nobody likes to hear that, but I don’t know what else you can do,” McCalmont said.

He said in the past there was discussion of merging the police forces of Freeport, Buffalo, South Buffalo and Cadogan Township. Digiacobbe said Freeport, which pays part-time officers $15.50 per hour, is around the middle of the pack among municipalities in part-time police wages.

He said another way to attract part-time officers is to raise the hourly wage and even consider offering some benefits.

“That’s the part that would kill us, not the salaries, but the benefits,” McCalmont said.

Nonetheless, Digiacobbe said it is a competitive situation.

“You have police chiefs going to the academy trying to recruit,” he said.

Council took no action on the issue but members said they would continue to look at ways to solve the problem.

Meanwhile, the council agreed to continue to advertise for part-time police candidates.