About five years ago, the South Buffalo Township Police Department comprised two officers and a lone civilian SUV that was converted for police use.
On July 15, the township hired its fourth full-time police officer, at $23 an hour, who, unlike some of his predecessors, will patrol in a purpose-built police vehicle. Township police now have two Ford F-150 Responders and a Ford Interceptor at their disposal.
South Buffalo more than doubled its police spending in recent years, from $110,000 in 2018 to $250,000 in 2023, all without a tax increase.
The addition of Officer Ethan Miller is just the latest reflection of the township’s efforts to overhaul a department that once was nearly invisible.
Township Supervisor Joe Charlton said the key to freeing up funds has been eliminating unnecessary expenditures, such as contracts for idle software and financing investments over multiple years.
“We shaved a substantial amount of expenses off,” Charlton said. “It was just stuff we weren’t using.”
Recent investments in police aren’t just for appearance, Supervisor Paul Bergad said. He credited the extra officer, who was hired in 2021, and a more active community presence for a drop in daytime break-ins.
Cadogan Township Supervisor David Round is a satisfied customer.
The township of 300 could never sustain its own force, so it contracts police coverage from South Buffalo for about $20,000 a year, Round said.
That contract is up at the end of this year. Round would like to see the municipalities reach a five-year extension.
“When you get something good, you want to hang on to it,” he said.
Now, South Buffalo is eyeing perhaps the largest investment ever in its police force — a new station.
In 2022, the township moved its offices out of the building on Iron Bridge Road and into a roomier facility at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania branch campus in RIDC Innovation Park (formerly known as Northpointe Industrial Park). Police stayed behind.
Officials want to add an adjacent building in Northpointe and relocate the police department there. That would cost about $750,000, according to Bergad. He is banking on state and federal grants to cover most or all of the cost.
Chief Jeffrey Kuntz, blunt in his appraisal, said it’s time for an upgrade.
“It’s not a station,” he said. “It’s a house.”
