WEST WILDWOOD – The latest Board of Commissioners meeting did nothing to ease tensions between the governing body and a committee aiming to save the Police Department.
The Friday, Aug. 1, meeting saw Deborah Fox, organizer of the Committee to Save the West Wildwood Police Department, call for the commissioners to either restore the Police Department or resign.
Fox accused each of the commissioners of lying or refusing to respond to questions.
Mayor Matt Ksiazek in turn referred to a letter about the issue circulated by the committee as a “total falsehood” and “blatant lies.”
“Everything [in the letter] is presented as fact – it is not,” Ksiazek said.
In addition, each side had a different take on the position of Police Chief Jackie Ferentz, who was fired by former Mayor Chuck Frederick, rehired by the next administration under Christopher Fox, and won a settlement against the borough for about $1.7 million.
Ferentz is currently on terminal leave pending her retirement, collecting unused leave time and getting payments on the settlement. The borough said she is exercising the options under her contract. At least one resident said Ferentz wishes to come back to work, something the borough denies.
Residents at the meeting were divided in their support for or opposition to the Board of Commissioners. Ksiazek and Commissioner Joe Segrest were elected in 2020, along with John Banning, who did not run for reelection last year. He was replaced by Commissioner Jane DiMattia, who has been particularly targeted for criticism as the current director of public safety.
Unlike previous meetings, there was applause showing support for the commissioners, who have entered into a half-year agreement with North Wildwood for police services. The commissioners said the half year would allow them to come up with a reasonable plan for the borough for such services, which might include a longer-term agreement with North Wildwood.
Some residents said that since county Prosecutor Jeffrey Sutherland installed a monitor to oversee the Police Department, which he announced on Jan. 21, they feel they are not getting appropriate levels of police service.
One resident said a North Wildwood patrolman showed up after her husband collapsed, but he left after EMTs arrived, and they struggled to get him down from the second floor.
“You’re not providing us coverage,” she said.
West Wildwood uses City of Wildwood EMS crews. One police source said it is not part of a police officer’s duties to help EMTs move people.
Another resident voiced a similar complaint, saying her husband fell out of his chair and immediate help was not available. She said her husband subsequently passed away.
But one man said the complaints about how the commissioners have dealt with the Police Department are the cries of “a vocal minority advocating for the status quo.”
Fox, for her part, told the commissioners they have not listened to anything the residents told them, referring to a large crowd that pushed a previous meeting outdoors in order not to violate fire codes. She called the commissioners “incompetent” for entering into a six-month agreement with North Wildwood for $325,000.
“Had you had the common sense to do what needed to be done we would have been OK,” she said.
At their June 6 meeting the commissioners expressed futility with trying to maintain a police department, saying they hired and lost 24 officers over the past four and a half years. The borough paid $15,000 for a report issued by the N.J. State Association of Chiefs of Police, which a resident at the Aug. 1 meeting described as “pretty damning.”
Opponents claim the report was a sham, only reporting what the commissioners wanted it to say. The report provided four options for restoring police services; the commissioners chose the option of entering a shared services agreement with a neighboring municipality for the services.
The North Wildwood Police Department is currently responding to calls from West Wildwood.
Contact the reporter, Christopher South, at csouth@cmcherald.com or call 609-886-8600, ext. 128.