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After more than 50 years of service to the community, the Nunda Police Department still plays an active role in keeping watch for the public.
The department, headed for the past four years by Chief Jeff Wilcox, consists of 12 part-time officers, many of whom supplement their income working either part-time or full-time jobs elsewhere.
Wilcox, too, is a part-time officer, working full-time as a SUNY Geneseo security officer.
With the other jobs that his officers have, Wilcox said one of his biggest challenges is putting together a schedule that will supply the community with 10 to 16 hours of police coverage every day, seven days a week.
This segues into the police budget, of which more than half goes into payroll. The rest of the $107,018.29 budget is invested into equipment, insurance and maintenance for its two vehicles.
Regarding the budget, Wilcox said, “some people think that’s a lot, some people think that’s not a lot, depends on who you ask.”
However, Wilcox has been successful in obtaining more than $31,000 in grants so far this year, which has helped supply some of the department’s needs without adding a burden to the local taxpayers.
The grant money has gone to supplement payroll and obtain new technologies for the department such as upgrading its interview room (with the cooperation from the Livingston County District Attorney’s Office), provided computerized equipment for use inside the patrol car, a license plate reader and a portable breathalyzer.
Although Nunda has a part-time police staff, it doesn’t mean that it’s department’s coverage is smaller in scope. Compared to other area departments that have some full-time staff members and larger budgets, the NPD jurisdiction blankets the entire town, not just the village.
This provides the town residents with extra road patrol, plus, in some instances, gives the people a quicker response time to calls than a Sheriff’s deputy or State Police officer might be able to provide.
On top of patrolling and responding to calls, the department provides community-oriented services such as child seat safety inspections in conjunction with the Livingston County Safe kids, and a bike rodeo at the summer recreation program where the department inspected bicycles and gave away 40 to 50 helmets to children this summer.
The department has also been busy expanding its offices on Mill Street. The department’s office was adjacent to the Village office until the Town and Village moved into a shared government center on Massachusetts Street late last year. As part of their expansion, the department has installed some furniture from donated sources, taken out a wooden service island and replaced the carpet.
After more than 50 years of service to the community, the Nunda Police Department still plays an active role in keeping watch for the public.
The department, headed for the past four years by Chief Jeff Wilcox, consists of 12 part-time officers, many of whom supplement their income working either part-time or full-time jobs elsewhere.
Wilcox, too, is a part-time officer, working full-time as a SUNY Geneseo security officer.
With the other jobs that his officers have, Wilcox said one of his biggest challenges is putting together a schedule that will supply the community with 10 to 16 hours of police coverage every day, seven days a week.
This segues into the police budget, of which more than half goes into payroll. The rest of the $107,018.29 budget is invested into equipment, insurance and maintenance for its two vehicles.
Regarding the budget, Wilcox said, “some people think that’s a lot, some people think that’s not a lot, depends on who you ask.”
However, Wilcox has been successful in obtaining more than $31,000 in grants so far this year, which has helped supply some of the department’s needs without adding a burden to the local taxpayers.
The grant money has gone to supplement payroll and obtain new technologies for the department such as upgrading its interview room (with the cooperation from the Livingston County District Attorney’s Office), provided computerized equipment for use inside the patrol car, a license plate reader and a portable breathalyzer.
Although Nunda has a part-time police staff, it doesn’t mean that it’s department’s coverage is smaller in scope. Compared to other area departments that have some full-time staff members and larger budgets, the NPD jurisdiction blankets the entire town, not just the village.
This provides the town residents with extra road patrol, plus, in some instances, gives the people a quicker response time to calls than a Sheriff’s deputy or State Police officer might be able to provide.
On top of patrolling and responding to calls, the department provides community-oriented services such as child seat safety inspections in conjunction with the Livingston County Safe kids, and a bike rodeo at the summer recreation program where the department inspected bicycles and gave away 40 to 50 helmets to children this summer.
The department has also been busy expanding its offices on Mill Street. The department’s office was adjacent to the Village office until the Town and Village moved into a shared government center on Massachusetts Street late last year. As part of their expansion, the department has installed some furniture from donated sources, taken out a wooden service island and replaced the carpet.
In a show of community support for the force, for four years the Nunda Kiwanis Club has donated a portion of their garage at their park for the department’s vehicles.
The Nunda Police Department began in the mid 1950s as the result of a public vote. The first chief was George Burns, who worked full-time, and alone, for many years.
Dave Thompson, retired police chief, said that the biggest change he has seen in the department is that it is more technologically advanced than it was when he started in 1973.
“They just started computers when I retired,” he said, recalling that he helped write a grant for the department’s first desktop computer.
Thompson, now a town councilman, said he can remember when the department used to write arrest reports on 3 by 5 cards.
When Thompson joined, there were three part-time officers, plus the full-time chief, Mel Allen, who, after retiring in the mid-70s, was the last full-time chief.
Each of the three part-timers had a chance to be chief for a while. Thompson served in that capacity the longest – for 15 years – until 2001. Jim Erwin held the job after Thompson until 2006, when Wilcox took it over.
As with many part-time positions, officers have come and gone through the Department doors.
“You can’t swing a big stick around this county without hitting someone who started their career here,” Wilcox said. Thompson agreed, and said that must mean the department has been doing something right all these years for other departments to hire so many who got their start there.
Thompson commended Chief Wilcox, and opined that local taxpayers “get more than their money’s worth,” with the Nunda Police Department.
