By Chief Jim Heavey
Recently, Greenwich was once again in the midst of a discussion about restoring police officers to Greenwich Avenue to direct traffic as they had done in the past. This discussion led to a petition forwarded to the RTM to hold a Sense of the Meeting Resolution (SOMR) on the matter of returning traffic cops to the Avenue.
The petitioners withdrew their request to the RTM last Friday, but I still believe it is important to give the community an update on your police department’s strategies in the central business district. As your Chief of the Greenwich Police Dept., I think it’s only appropriate to share my thoughts and reasoning with you here.
Police officers directing traffic in spotless white gloves were once a common sight in many towns. In 1970, Greenwich officials changed the Avenue from two-way to one-way to improve traffic flow — a major update — and police officers remained stationed at three intersections. In 2010, the then chief removed the officer from the intersection of Greenwich Ave. and Lewis Street. Some of the local merchants were upset, but the absence of that officer did not result in traffic mayhem, and it allowed the GPD to cover other, emerging issues.
In 2019, the department recognized that there was an increase in a number of crimes in the downtown area, including large-scale shoplifting, identity theft, and misuse of fraudulent or stolen credit cards. These rising crimes had a significant impact on local residents and merchants — and posting officers in intersections to direct traffic did nothing to address the situation.
In response, we created a special team called the Organized Retail Criminal Activity (ORCA) Team. ORCA officers dress in plain clothes and work with shop owners, with outstanding results. In the last year alone, they investigated 71 cases, resulting in 130 persons being arrested for 363 felonies, 391 misdemeanors, and dozens of infractions. Many of these local arrests were tied to major regional cases being investigated by federal law enforcement agencies. Many of these suspects have been tied to violent crimes committed elsewhere.
I can report to you that so far in 2025, there has not been an increase in crime on Greenwich Ave., but we have made more arrests for property crimes, which often result in higher prices for all of us. The ORCA Team recovered over $261,000 worth of property in asset forfeiture and over $110,000 dollars in merchandise.
ORCA has prevented countless c r i me s, assisted agencies in solving similar crimes in other communities, and is now a model for other police agencies nationwide.
The GPD launched another initiative in 2020, when we recognized we had more policing to do but fewer officers to do it. To better respond to the new ways people were visiting the Avenue after COVID, we returned officers to patrolling on foot and on bicycles. This police presence was enhanced by four electric bicycles.
One of the successes of the bike patrol is its ability to rapidly respond to emergencies in the downtown business district. Bike officers now patrol from the top of Greenwich Avenue to Bruce Park and the waterfront. They respond to incidents at Town Hall, businesses downtown, and homes on Mason and Milbank Aves.
A word about GPD staff ing levels: When I became a full-time officer in 1986, we had 175 police officers. This number remained steady until after 2000, when the number dropped to 156. As of July 1, 2024, the department has 152 sworn full-time officers. Thus, during my tenure at GPD, police officer strength has decreased by over 10%; during the same timeframe, the population of Greenwich has increased by about 5%.
Yet even with fewer officers, it’s simply not true that there are fewer officers on the Avenue now than when they were on fixed traffic posts. Just last week, I walked the Avenue, as I often do, to find Officer Carl directing traffic on Elm Street. (Yes, officers still do direct traffic on the Ave. — they are empowered to direct traffic whenever they see a need, and they make sure to check during busy times such as lunch hour.) I saw Officers Lloyd and Turcsanyi patrolling on bicycles. I also noted Officers Koppleman and DeLuca in civilian clothes, checking in with retailers and communicating new information about recent activity.
The issue of how best to deploy our limited law enforcement resources in our busy downtown came up for a vote just a few years ago. On Jan. 19, 2021, the RTM voted against a SOMR that encouraged returning police officers to a fixed traffic post within a painted white circle in the center of the intersection. The vote was defeated 127 to 81, with 7 abstaining.
Even though the RTM SOMR to restore officers to fixed traffic posts on the Avenue has been withdrawn, I want to assure the community that the police department leadership will continue to evaluate our deployment of officers and address the concerns of the community in the best way we can. I recognize that Greenwich continues to be a special place to live and work, but in order to remain resilient, we have to adapt to change.
I sincerely believe that the use of foot and bike-mounted patrols, alongside our ORCA Team, provides the best service to the Greenwich community, and that the return of police officers to directing traffic on Greenwich Ave. would be a detriment to these efforts. The most visible enforcement isn’t necessarily the most effective enforcement.
