Southold police, officials celebrate $1M federal grant for vehicle, radio upgrades
Southold police are set to receive new vehicles and upgraded radios through more than $1 million in federal funding, which officials said will improve patrol operations and emergency communication across town.
The grant, secured by Congressman Nick LaLota, was first announced in January. The Republican, who’s running for reelection to the House in November, joined Southold officials outside police headquarters in Peconic on Thursday to mark the funding.
The funding includes $871,701 for 10 new Ford vehicles and $132,857 for 20 multi-band portable radios for the department.
“This is a significant investment in public safety within our community,” Police Chief Steven Grattan said. “I thank you for your support of law enforcement and your commitment to providing equipment and funding so that we can provide efficient and effective policing.”
The new radios will improve the department’s ability to communicate with Suffolk County, New York State and neighboring municipalities. Their dual-band capability will allow officers to use both the town’s current VHF radio channel and the countywide system, improving coordination during emergencies and routine patrols.
About 30 Southold officers already use dual-band radios. An additional 25 currently use radios that do not have dual-band capability.
The vehicles will be a mix of Ford Explorers and F-150s.
“These hardworking cops deserve having good equipment to help them do their tough and dangerous job, and it helps them do that,” Rep. LaLota said. “They risk their own safety; they take away time from their own families; their families send them away to their shifts here so that we can be safe. We don’t take that for granted. One of the ways we say thanks is we bring money like this to make sure that they have the equipment they need to do their job.”
Supervisor Al Krupski said the money allows the town to fund the basics of public safety.
“Public safety is not to be taken for granted, and it’s our responsibility to ensure proper funding for staffing, equipment, and training,” Mr. Krupski said. “These tools are very important to our operations. This example in Peconic is a good example of public servants from different levels of government working together to help our community.”
The department also received its New York State Law Enforcement Accreditation certificate from the state Division of Criminal Justice Services last month — two decades after it first took steps to achieve the designation.
