Crime & Safety

Police Chief Says New Role Is About Finding Common Ground

Ruzinski appointed to lead the newly consolidated police and fire departments under the newly formed Protective Services Department.

Consolidation can be a dirty word in some circles, and the word can raise concerns about pay cuts, staff reductions, or shared responsibilities.

However, Menomonee Falls Police Chief Anna Ruzinksi, who also will oversee the Fire Department as the village's new protective services director, says that’s not the case for the restructured fire and police departments.

The Village Board last week that created a Protective Services Department, and the fire and police departments are now divisions of that department rather than separate entities. The following day, the Police and Fire Commission appointed Ruzinski to lead that new department.

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Although last week was the first public meeting about the proposed changes to the department, there were several meetings held in closed session prior to the vote. The Village Board met in closed session four times between August and February, and also met with both chiefs. The meetings were in closed session because discussions involved the promotion of a village employee.

Roughly 10 firefighters attended last week's meeting where the changes were approved and raised questions about the course village leaders were taking. However, Ruzinksi addressed their concerns that same night.

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“I let the firefighters know that we have no intention of having a combined Protective Services Department from the context of public safety officers doing the job of police and fire,” Ruzinski said. “I want to assist them with their budget, and stabilize the administrative part of the department so that we can look to the future of the fire department.”

Fire Chief Jeffrey Hevey declined to comment on the organization of the department because he said it was still too early in the implementation process.

As the director of the new department, Ruzinksi said the goal is to find where overlaps exist between the two departments, and lend administrative and command support. The rationale behind the change wasn't a cost-driven decision.

She said the features a highly trained command staff, which could assist and stabilize administration in the . Hevey is the only full-time command-level staffer.

“Chief Hevey's next two in command are part time. That’s hard. They’ve been able to function, but they do need some help if the department is to grow,” Ruzinski said.

Ruzinski added that the new organizational structure of the departments would only impact command level and administration.

“This is solely an administrative command and control oversight of the Fire Department. I am not going to meddle in the operations,” Ruzinski said. “I think that might be a falsehood that people assume if you are consolidating, or joining things, that it automatically means you are downsizing. I think that was a misunderstanding that may have caused some angst.”

In addition to administration support, Ruzinski said she’d like to explore resources shared by both departments. For example, both officers and firefighters need to be re-certified in CPR regularly. Rather than holding two separate classes, both officers and firefighters could take the class together.

Building a new fire station on the south side of the village is also in the long-range plans. Ruzinksi said that a police substation could be built inside the new station where officers to interview suspects and write reports, which would keep officers out in the field longer.

These are just a few of many possibilities for partnership under the new structure.

“Chief Hevey and I are both up to the challenge,” Ruzinksi said. “It’s something new and this will take us a while to get up and running. If the goal is to provide the best services to our citizens, I think it can be a very effective venture.”

It’s still early in the process to see precisely how the new Protective Services Department will operate. However, Village Manager Mark Fitzgerald said last week that officials intentionally left the plan open-ended.

“It may leave a little bit of discomfort for people since we don’t have fully charted course,” Fitzgerald said. “If we had a real precise agenda, we may miss opportunities. We want to accomplish synergies and efficiencies wherever we can find them rather than a preset approach. We are going to be taking our time with this.”

Although the two departments have been separate entities historically in the village, they are often both on the scene during incidents. While firefighters extinguish a blaze, the police secure the roadways and investigate the scene once it’s extinguished.

Fortunately, Ruzinksi said the two departments have enjoyed a strong relationship in the village, which she said isn’t always the case in other communities. The new organizational structure will allow the two departments to work cohesively on a daily basis rather than just on the scene of an incident.

“In the past we have been our separate entities. But as you have budgets consolidating, we need to be a little bit smarter and work together rather than separately. We shouldn’t duplicate services,” Ruzinski said. “We have the potential to build something here that could be a model for other communities.”


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