Ogdensburg mayor plans ‘significant’ changes to police, fire departments

OGDENSBURG, New York (WWNY) – The mayor of Ogdensburg is calling for sweeping changes within the city fire and police departments.

Mike Skelly wants the St. Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office to assume law enforcement services in the city and turn the fire department into a combination career and volunteer organization.

A news release issued Friday by City Manager Stephen Jellie outlines a 12-point plan to “continue the financial survival of the city” and “accelerate the revival of the city.”

The proposals will be presented to the city council during next Monday’s meeting.

The mayor wants lawmakers to consider the following:

1. A resolution calling for the New York State Office of General Services to develop a plan of action for sale of all property encompassed at the former Ogdensburg Correctional Facility and the unused portions of the St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center. Councilor John Rishe is the designated political point of contact and will work closely with the City Manager to establish a working group of city, county and state representatives to advance this initiative.
2. A resolution requesting the Governor of the State of New York permanently designate one seat on the Ogdensburg Bridge and Port Authority for a member of the Ogdensburg City Council, to be selected by the Mayor.
3. A resolution instructing the City Manager to present a formal plan NLT 1 October 2022 for transitioning the Ogdensburg Fire Department to a combination career / volunteer organization beginning in 2023.
4. A resolution instructing the City Manager to present a formal plan NLT 1 August 2022 to request the St. Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office submit a proposal to assume law enforcement services in the City of Ogdensburg.
5. A resolution instructing the City Manager to present a formal plan NLT 1 June 2022 to request the Development Authority of the North Country submit a proposal to assume responsibility for the operations of the City’s Water and Waste Water Treatment Facilities in 2023.
6. A resolution appointing City Councilor John Rishe as the designated City Council liaison to the Office of Senator Charles Schumer.
7. A resolution appointing City Councilor Dan Skamperle as the designated City Council liaison to the Office of Senator Kirsten Gillibrand.
8. A resolution appointing Deputy Mayor Steven Fisher as the designated City Council liaison to the Office of Congresswoman Elise Stefanik.
9. A resolution appointing City Councilor Michael Powers as the designated City Council liaison to the Office of Senator Patricia Ritchie
10. A resolution appointing City Councilor William Dillabough as the designated City Council liaison to the Office of Assemblyman Mark Walczyk.
11. A resolution appointing City Councilor Nicole Kennedy as the designated liaison to the Ogdensburg School District.
12. A resolution requesting / establishing a regularly scheduled quarterly meeting with the St. Lawrence County Chairman of the Board of Legislators and County Administrator with the City of Ogdensburg Mayor and City Manager.

When 7 News questioned Jellie about the law enforcement proposal, he said there are no plans to eliminate the city’s police department. Instead, he said the city wants to see how many officers are needed.

“The city would tell the sheriff this is the level of service that we are looking for, what would be the costs for me to do that, and then the city council could then take a look at those costs and determine if it is feasible and a good value for city residents,” he said.

Jellie says with council support, they would hope to start in the summer and spend 4 to 5 months analyzing law enforcement services to see how many officers would be efficient.

Police Chief Mark Kearns could not be reached for comment on the matter.

We also reached out to Jason Bouchard, the president of Ogdensburg Professional Firefighters Local 1799, for reaction to the fire department proposal. Jason Bouchard said he wasn’t surprised by it since the mayor and his allies have worked to downsize the department since Skelly took office in 2020.

“It’s been something that has been talked about and clearly this administration hasn’t been in the business of building up the fire department career-wise so it will be interesting to see how it plays out,” said Bouchard.

Jellie said the city would look to train and add around 10 fully-trained volunteers alongside the city’s current staffing of 17 firefighters.

“We got to start moving in the direction of this combination model before at some point the city finds itself in a situation to not have adequate fire protection because they can’t hire enough people and pay them,” said Jellie.

In a prepared statement, Skelly said, “Since making the decision to run for Mayor of Ogdensburg, I remain committed to restoring the City’s financial strength, public safety and economic development to its fullest potential. Ogdensburg cannot expect to return to the past as a plan for its future, and it cannot continue to manage its resource one department at a time, for one year at time. Under my leadership, this City Council will move beyond the past, embrace the present and plan for the future – in other words, it will do the job the people elected us to do.”

Copyright 2022 WWNY. All rights reserved.