Deerfield Beach outlines plan, timeline and $30.1 million estimate to stand up city police and fire departments
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Summary
Public safety director Sean Gladio and the city CFO outlined steps and costs to create municipal police and fire departments, asking the commission for a formal authorization and chiefs onboarded by April 30, 2026. The CFO estimated about $30.1 million in start-up and overlap costs over 19 months.
Deerfield Beach public safety officials gave a detailed implementation update Feb. 17 as the city moves to establish municipal police and fire departments after the planned transition away from the Broward Sheriff's Office.
"We stand at the threshold of a defining moment in our city's history," Public Safety Director Sean Gladio told the City Commission, saying staff had begun regulatory steps and vendor engagements needed for a transition and had started weekly communications and peer outreach to build training, equipment and policy frameworks. Gladio asked the commission for a formal resolution authorizing the creation of the City of Deerfield Beach Police Department and City of Deerfield Beach Fire Department and requested that the police and fire chiefs be onboarded preferably no later than April 30, 2026.
The city's chief financial officer, Oleg Gorakhovsky, presented a line-item estimate for start-up and overlap costs. Officials summarized an overall implementation estimate of roughly $30.1 million over the next 19 months, with approximately $10.1 million expected in 2026 and about $20.0 million projected in 2027. Gorakhovsky said the capital equipment start-up estimate is about $20.5 million (including vehicles and technology), initial operating costs near $4.1 million, and additional overlap and contingency build-ins totaling approximately $5.5 million.
Commissioners and staff emphasized sequencing: Gladio said certain regulatory identifiers and credentials are already underway (fire department ID application, ORI registration and planned CJIS access) and that hiring chiefs and executive leadership is central to designing operational doctrine, staffing models and deployment philosophies rather than pre‑specifying a final Gantt schedule.
Several commissioners asked for more visual materials and clearer infrastructure planning. Vice Mayor Preston said he needs visuals to understand span-of-control, deployment and timelines; Commissioner Shanetzky pressed for clarity about capital needs for aging fire stations and whether those building costs are included in the current estimates. The city manager replied that facility capital projects are a separate category that would come to the commission as distinct decisions and that some funds and state assistance are being pursued for station improvements.
Residents in public comment repeatedly asked for transparency and access to backup documentation for prior feasibility studies and for the contractor analysis used in the decision to leave BSO. Staff reiterated that certain supporting documents are included in the meeting backup and that a public summary of ARPA-funded projects and other items would be posted online; staff also said they would continue biweekly updates on the public safety transition on the city's website.
Next steps: staff asked the commission for a resolution to formally authorize the stand-up of the departments, and officials said they will continue recruiting, vendor procurement, regulatory filings and weekly public updates. The commission did not take a formal vote on those requests at this meeting but approved a related consulting contract (Item 6) to assist with transition planning.
What remains uncertain: officials gave target dates and cost estimates but said those numbers could change pending procurement outcomes, financing decisions and the eventual policy decisions of new chiefs once hired.
