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Commissioners debate Ordinance 17-2 raising police lieutenant positions amid recruitment and budget questions
Summary
Commissioners discussed Ordinance 17-2, which would add two lieutenant positions to Millville's police department. Speakers raised concerns about supervisor-to-officer ratios, recruitment, retention, and budget implications; no formal vote was taken in the work session.
Commissioners discussed Ordinance 17-2, an item on the agenda that would increase the number of authorized lieutenant positions in the Millville Police Department by two, bringing the total to six. The discussion centered on supervision ratios, recruitment and retention, and the potential budget impact of additional supervisory posts.
Commissioner Suey (first reference: Commissioner Suey) said she had received multiple public inquiries about the proposal and outlined concerns raised by residents. She described the department as having “52 active officers” and recited an example staffing mix: “if you take 6 lieutenants, 15 sergeants, a captain and a chief, we have…23 supervisors for 52 active officers,” a distribution she said would approach “almost a 2 to 1 margin.” She questioned whether the change would address neighborhood problems—ATV and motorcycle disturbances, park encampments and fires, crime rates—or help with recruitment and retention.
Suey said the office of the prosecutor previously recommended increased supervision, but the last recommendation she had seen was dated February 2009; she said she had asked the chief for any newer guidance. Other commissioners and staff framed the ordinance as planning rather than immediate hiring; one commissioner said the ordinance does not mean the city will hire two lieutenants immediately but would authorize positions as part of a longer-term recruitment and promotion plan.
Commissioners noted the department anticipates adding officers: one speaker said the city could hire “maybe 15 to 20 officers within the next year or so,” and another cautioned realistic expectations might be lower. Supporters argued that added ranks create promotion pathways that can aid retention, while critics and residents asked for clearer links between new supervisory roles and on-the-street public safety outcomes.
In related comments, a commissioner reported asking “Ross” how much UEZ (Urban Enterprise Zone) funding could be directed to police control of the UEZ area; Ross reportedly said $70,000 would be available in a future application. The transcript records no formal vote on Ordinance 17-2 during the work session; commissioners said they expected further public comment and discussion at the regular meeting.
The discussion was procedural and advisory in the work session; no ordinance adoption, motion, or binding budget amendment occurred in open session during this meeting.
