NORTH WILDWOOD – The union representative for the city’s 911 dispatchers called it a “damned shame” that the city began talking about joining Cape May County’s 911 central dispatch system after entering into contract negotiations with Communications Workers of America 1036.
Adam Liebtag told the Herald after the Tuesday, Aug. 6, North Wildwood City Council meeting that the dispatchers won union representation in January, and this would be the first contract under CWA.
Liebtag, CWA Local 1036 president, told the council that county dispatch is “going through real trouble right now,” citing a high turnover rate for dispatchers and a shortage of dispatchers.
“They just lost one,” he said.
Liebtag, who said the union represents about 8,800 dispatchers across the country, said 911 dispatch is a public service and the dispatchers are considered first responders.
“This is not a discretionary service,” he said.
Liebtag cited the “homegrown” nature of the North Wildwood dispatcher team, and said joining central dispatch would eliminate the connection between emergency services and the community. He said a centralized dispatch doesn’t know the community, and will result in longer response times. Liebtag said North Wildwood has a stable workforce, and while the cost is about $380,000, or $30,000 more than the county would charge, he believes there are benefits to keeping its own dispatchers.
“You have to ask what you’re really saving for, what you are giving up,” he said. “To save $30,000 to $50,000, it’s not worth it.”
He asked that the conversation on dispatch services be continued.
North Wildwood Mayor Patrick Rosenello said the city has been looking at the changeover since about 2021.
“It’s been two or three years,” he said.
Rosenello said this is not the only consideration on the table, and that there was talk of joining up with Wildwood and Wildwood Crest. Wildwood Crest is now one of six Cape May County municipalities that is part of central dispatch. North Wildwood would be the seventh.
Rosenello said there are problems with operating its own dispatch in a seasonal climate, where the need for dispatch services quadruples in the summer season. He said there is a need to bring in outside dispatchers and/or use police officers as dispatchers, which he said they do not appreciate being asked to do. In addition, Rosenello said at times there are tremendous upgrades that need to be made to dispatch systems.
“There is a process we are following and I asked the new chief (Katherine Madden) to look into county dispatch,” he said.
According to Rosenello, Madden recommended going with central dispatch. Rosenello said he also has a high level of confidence in Christopher Leusner, the former Middle Township police chief and current Middle Township mayor, who is the new county Office of Emergency Management coordinator. As such, he oversees central dispatch.
Rosenello added that the trend in public safety has been to go to county dispatch locations, adding that Board of County Commissioners Director Leonard Desiderio has often said Cape May County is the sum of its 16 municipalities.
“He has been emphasizing that on a regular basis,” Rosenello said.
Rosenello said he understands the concerns of the union representative, but added that North Wildwood’s dispatchers would be hired by the county, which would result in them getting a more generous retirement plan.
Several members of the public spoke, asking the city not to go with central dispatch. Some claimed there were faster response times with local dispatch. One woman claimed she called 911 and never received an answer, adding that she would never call 911 again – only the local dispatch number.
Leusner, whose police department joined central dispatch when he was chief, said the technology used is state of the art. He disputed the rumor that 911 calls are sent to Trenton before they are rerouted to the local first responders.
“911 calls do not go to Trenton; there is no delay in response,” he said.
Leusner said there are multiple layers of cutting-edge technology that analyze the latitude and longitude of where calls come from and dispatch first responders appropriately.
“I am confident in the technology and our staff,” Leusner said.
Leusner also said central dispatch is not experiencing a high turnover rate, as Liebtag said, which was based on reports from dispatchers. Leusner said central dispatch would actually be adding personnel as more towns join the operation.
Contacted after the meeting, County Administrator Kevin Lare said, “The county’s consolidated dispatch program continues to provide exemplary service to the towns we serve and we look forward to additional partners coming on board.”
He added, “When governments work together and share services, our residents win, and this is a shining example of that practice.”
Contact the reporter, Christopher South, at csouth@cmcherald.com or 609-886-8600, ext. 128.
