Jeannette police to patrol highrise

City police will begin patrolling Jeannette Manor after council approved an agreement with the Westmoreland County Housing Authority.

Jeannette Police Chief Derek Manley said he thinks the move will boost relationships with residents and deter crime.

“I feel that it’s a big benefit for the department and the residents both,” he said.

The 12-month agreement will pay for officers to do extra patrols at Jeannette Manor outside their normal work day. There is $20,000 allotted for the work. Councilman Chuck Highlands said the agreement will not cost city taxpayers anything.

“When $20,000 is spent, the project’s over,” he said.

The department had a similar agreement with the authority years ago, Manley said, but the patrols have not been happening recently. A council majority in 2022 rejected the authority’s offer to pay for Jeannette officers to patrol the building during their off hours.

The vote on Thursday was unanimous.

“It’s not a full-time thing, it’s a couple hours here and there scattered throughout the week,” Manley said.

Housing authority officials have worked with municipal departments for patrols at other facilities, including in Irwin, Latrobe and Arnold.

Councilwoman Michelle Langdon said she was in favor of the agreement after meeting with residents and staff at Jeannette Manor a couple of weeks ago.

“We discussed the needs of the residents down there and there were three main concerns that they had,” she said. “One was an increased police presence in and around the building.”

The agreement coming with no cost to the city was a big benefit, said Mayor Curtis Antoniak.

“With the police patrolling the high rise, it’s going to bring great community relationships with the residents there,” he said. “They’re going to talk to our police and that’s what we like. Also, it’s going to deter crime.”