Budget panel reviews $28 million Greenwich police request amid vacancies

Other Committee · Meeting of February 19, 2026

Greenwich police request $28 million budget as force sits 14 officers short. The Greenwich police chief told a town budget committee the department is at its lowest staffing level in nearly 15 years, with 152 authorized positions and 14 vacancies, and asked to keep a roughly $296,000 replacement for police boat 124 in this year's capital plan after the boat's predecessor was sold for scrap at $7,500. Overtime has climbed from about 15 percent of payroll before the pandemic to 20 percent now.

The department also requested a second freedom-of-information records specialist and a third animal control officer, moves liaisons Harry and David Weissrod said they largely support. Speed cameras have issued about 7,000 tickets and cut speeding roughly 90 percent at eight of nine locations, though North Street has seen only a 38 percent drop. New position requests go to the Human Resources Committee February 25, with a vote set for March 3.

In the full story:

• The complete report — 1,019 words

Source: the Other Committee meeting of February 19, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

The Full Article

GREENWICH — February 19, 2026 — The Greenwich Police Department asked a town budget committee Thursday to approve a fiscal 2027 operating budget of just over $28 million, an increase of roughly 4.57 percent, while warning that the department is down 14 officers, the lowest staffing level in the chief's nearly 15-year tenure.

The department's budget book figure of $28,193,100 does not include the cost of three new or upgraded positions the department is separately requesting, prompting a correction during the meeting. Committee members also weighed a request to keep replacement of police boat 124, at roughly $296,000, in this year's capital plan after the town's budget office had proposed deferring it a year.

The Full Story

The Greenwich police chief opened the presentation with a review of crime trends, telling the committee that overall calls for service were roughly flat but that financial crimes and phone and internet scams targeting vulnerable residents continue to rise. Driving-under-the-influence enforcement numbers are also up, the chief said, attributing the increase to more aggressive enforcement rather than more impaired driving. The department was ranked seventh in Connecticut in a recent Safewise public safety ranking, down from as high as first in prior years, a result the chief tied largely to unlocked cars left with keys inside.

The department was also recently reaccredited at the state's Tier 1 level and newly attained Tier 2 and Tier 3 accreditation, the highest level available, a process the chief credited to Detective Lieutenant Tim Kelly, who spent roughly two years compiling department policies and records for state reviewers.

Staffing dominated much of the discussion. Authorized strength stands at 152 officers, down from 155 before traffic-enforcement positions were reassigned and from 175 when the chief joined the department. The department currently has seven candidates in the pipeline for three seats in the April Connecticut Police Academy class, but new hires take nearly a year from swearing-in to being available for patrol duty. Eighteen officers are eligible to retire under the tier one pension system, and 42 more qualify for retirement at 50 percent pay after 20 years. Thirty-six officers carry 401(k) retirement accounts rather than pensions, meaning roughly 60 percent of patrol officers face no financial penalty for leaving after two years, the point at which the department can no longer recoup training costs from a hiring agency.

The department requested three staffing changes: increasing its freedom-of-information records specialist position from one to two full-time employees to handle a growing volume of body-camera footage requests; adding a third animal control officer to reduce reliance on overtime, which cost about $25,000 last year; and converting a part-time property and evidence clerk position to full-time under General Services. Budget committee liaisons Harry and David Weissrod, who had met separately with the chief, said they supported the freedom-of-information and property clerk increases but were more cautious on the animal control request, saying current staffing appeared to provide an acceptable, if not ideal, level of service.

Committee members also questioned rising overtime costs, which have grown from about 15 percent of payroll before the COVID-19 pandemic to roughly 20 percent today, and pressed the chief on whether hiring gaps would produce budget savings. The chief said savings from unfilled positions are largely offset by overtime needed to cover patrol shifts, since new academy graduates need a year of training before they are available to work.

On capital spending, the department detailed plans to replace boat 124 after the prior vessel was found to have hull damage from electrolysis and was sold at auction for $7,500 rather than repaired at an estimated cost of $265,000. The chief said a new boat is needed to avoid being down to a single vessel while the department's other two boats undergo routine maintenance.

"If we had not had that, we probably would have beat out Ridgefield, which doesn't have much going on there at all." — Greenwich Police Chief

"We have the oldest dive team in the state of Connecticut. It started in 1960." — Greenwich Police Chief

"When you have a boat fire, 139 has to stay in position and fight the fire, and you have to shuttle people back and forth with another boat." — Deputy Chief Jim Bonnie

The committee also reviewed the town's speed camera program with vendor Blue Line. The chief said the town has issued about 7,000 tickets, with eight of nine camera locations showing roughly a 90 percent reduction in speeding. The exception, on North Street near North Street School, has seen only a 38 percent reduction. Revenue from the cameras, which has not yet been received from the vendor, must by state law go toward traffic safety education, engineering and enforcement rather than the town's general fund; officials discussed using it for repairs to school zone warning lights.

Why It Matters

The staffing shortfall shapes nearly every line of the department's budget request, from a $25,000 animal control overtime bill to a proposed second freedom-of-information staffer needed to process body-camera footage. With 60 percent of patrol officers free to leave after two years without penalty, the department faces an ongoing retention challenge that a rival agency's pension benefit can outweigh, according to the chief.

The committee's capital decisions carry near-term consequences too: without approving the $296,000 boat purchase this year, the department could be down to one functioning vessel while its other two undergo maintenance. New position requests go before the town's Human Resources Committee on February 25, with a vote expected March 3.

Key Motions & Votes

• Action: Police Department fiscal 2027 new-position requests, including a second freedom-of-information records specialist, a third animal control officer and a full-time property and evidence clerk — Referred to Human Resources Committee meeting Feb. 25, with a vote expected March 3.
• Action: Purchase of police boat 124 replacement, approximately $296,000 — Continued for further committee consideration after being deferred a year in the town's initial budget proposal.

No other formal votes were taken at this meeting.

Source

Greenwich Community Television: Other Committee meeting, February 19, 2026