Penndel Could Turn Over Policing To Middletown

Penndel Borough could lose its hometown police department.

Officials from Penndel and Middletown confirmed to LevittownNow.com Friday evening that the two communities were talking about working together to police the borough. It was unclear if the negotiations involved Middletown taking over all policing in the borough or only certain hours.

Borough Council President Kali Sodano said Penndel began looking into whether Middletown could take over policing in the borough of 2,300-residents about five weeks ago.

“Middletown Township officials have had preliminary discussions with representatives of Penndel Borough regarding the possibility of entering into a police services agreement. Those discussions are ongoing at this time,” Township Manager Stephanie Teoli Kuhls said in an email.

Penndel Police Benevolent Association President Officer Ray Longhitano said he had only heard rumors from residents about the police department winding down operations. Putting together recent events this year, Longhitano said things are starting to add up and do not look good for the department.

A recent grievance concerning officers working in the one-room police headquarters had not been answered and Longhitano said he found that strange. Another grievance was about to be filed with the borough.

Rumors about Penndel reducing service hours or disbanding the 24/7/365 department that employs 10 part-time officers and the full-time chief have swirled in the Bucks County law enforcement community for the past two weeks.

The discussions were kept quiet due to contractual issues, Sodano said.

It wouldn’t be the first time the department has looked at outsourcing police services. Towards the end of the last decade, Penndel made steps to look for outside agencies to take over policing for the town.

The police department is the largest portion of the town’s budget, costing just under $500,000 per year.

Currently, the police chief’s contract is up for negotiations and the officers have a deal through 2018.

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Longhitano said breaking the contract with the part-time officers who make about $22 per hour would likely cause some problems. However, he wasn’t entirely sure how the process would work.

Police Chief Joseph Sciscio said he’s disappointed to hear the department he has led for the past five years could end. He said he took the job and passed up  other opportunities because Penndel’s department was sold to him as a longterm project and he really enjoys the town.

Sciscio spoke extremely highly of his officers and noted many keep working in the borough because of their motivation to help the community.

“This is happening to 10 people who bend over backwards for the town,” Longhitano said, adding that officers work in Penndel because of the community and not the money.

The union passed up two years of raises to settle the last contract. Longhitano said the union understood the borough did not have a lot of money and wanted to do best for the residents.

“At this time, Middletown Township anticipates that any potential police services agreement with Penndel Borough would include the requirement that police services provided to the residents of Penndel Borough would be provided at the same levels as those services provided to residents of Middletown Township,” Teoli Kuhls said.

Sciscio said borough officers responded to every single call, including ambulance squad calls, fire department dispatches and saved numerous people with opioid reversal drug Narcan. In addition, officers know the residents and quickly responded to resident complaints.

Another blow would be to the nearby boroughs of Hulmeville, Langhorne and Langhorne Manor. The three part-time departments often work with Penndel patrol officers. The departments will work to back the other up and respond to calls when one town is tied up while responding to another incident.

In working with the community, the department worked in recent years to start a police officer baseball card program.

Middletown police currently have 56 sworn officers. It is currently unclear if additional officers would be hired if Penndel and Middletown come to an agreement.

Middletown said the department has a full-service detective division, bicycles patrol, K-9 units, traffic units, a school resource officer and a community relations officer as benefits of their department, which is state accredited.

Penndel received casino impact grant money from Hulmeville in 2015 to construct a new police station in a garage next to the Borough Hall where the department is currently situated in a one-room office. The future of the new police station appears to be up in the air.

“It is important to note that all details of any potential agreement will be fully vetted during public meetings of both municipalities with ample opportunity for public input,” Teoli Kuhls said.

While the future of the police department is uncertain, the borough council will likely have to make a final decisions in the coming months as choices would have to be made about budgeting, employment agreements and the plans for the police station.

UPDATE, Saturday, 7:29 p.m.:

Kali Sodano, the Penndel Council President, released the following statement to LevittownNow Saturday:

As the result of a brainstorming session at a recent Borough Finance Committee meeting, Borough officials began preliminary discussions with Middletown Township representatives in regards to a potential intergovernmental agreement for police services.
(The idea has been mulled over from time to time in the past. Most recently, about ten years ago, a regionalized force was looked into with our neighboring boroughs but it ended up being too costly.)

Middletown has a well-equipped, professional police force providing 24/7 service to its citizens. Their daily patrol area geographically encircles Penndel, so absorbing the area would be an easy addition/smooth transition if the agreement is adopted. As stipulated in the potential agreement, Borough residents and businesses would receive the same level of service currently provided in Middletown.

Additionally, the borough would see an immediate six figure cost savings, plus the added benefit of stabilizing the cost for the length of the agreement. Right now our department is about 60% of the budget. Historically, the annual cost to maintain the department has increased YOY, and that increase varies widely and is often difficult to forecast due to mandates, insurance premiums, etc. These types of costs are hard for the borough to keep up with, especially considering our budget is bordering the millage cap.

It seems we will have all the necessary information prepared in time for the next council meeting on Sept 6. The topic will be presented for discussion and public input at that time.