CONVOCATION CENTER Officers will earn overtime pay for working on traffic control

By PATRICIA MEADE
VINDICATOR CRIME REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- So far, roughly 120 police officers signed up to work traffic control on an overtime basis for events at the new downtown arena.
The sign-up list for the Youngstown Convocation Center is available to captains and patrol officers alike, Lt. Robin Lees said Monday. He acknowledged it would be less expensive to use only patrol officers but said the higher ranks are included because they must have equal access to overtime assignments.
Overtime is paid at a time and a half rate. The following is the overtime rate by rank, according to hourly rates from the chief's office:
UCaptain, $51.73 per hour.
ULieutenant, $44.98.
UDetective sergeant, $39.12.
UPatrol officer, $27.45 to $34.01, depending on years of service.
Lees said the ranking officer who signs up, a captain or lieutenant, for example, serves as head of each downtown detail. Typically, a detail lasts five to six hours.
This past Sunday, for the Trans-Siberian Orchestra matinee, a captain and four patrolmen worked, at a total cost that ranged from about $940 to $1,125. For the TSO evening performance, a lieutenant, detective sergeant and five patrolmen worked, at a total cost that ranged from $1,270 to $1,525.
Officers alternate between overtime pay and accumulated time, which is hours banked to be used as time off at a later date. If officers work one event for overtime pay their next event hours will be banked.
Surcharge suggested
Some have suggested that the way to pay police overtime for events is to add a surcharge to convocation center tickets but that's something the new mayor's administration will likely have to deal with, Lees said.
The city owns the convocation center and has a vested interest in security and traffic control for its concerts and hockey games, he said.
Capt. Kenneth Centorame, who oversees convocation center traffic details, was not available Monday. Lees said the center also hired city officers to work inside the facility.
Lt. Mark Milstead, head of the traffic unit, said his goal is to have downtown visitors see an officer when they arrive and see police again when they leave. He said 80 of the 120 officers who signed up have already worked an event.
In November, the convocation center scheduled 12 events -- four concerts and eight hockey games, Milstead said. The number of officers needed depends on the crowd anticipated for each event, with fewer needed for hockey games, he said.
What they do
Once a concert or hockey game begins, officers in cruisers and on motorcycles who directed traffic then patrol the parking lots, decks and streets, Milstead said. Officers return to the convocation center when an event ends to ensure that traffic moves smoothly, he said.
He said Sunday's evening concert resulted in a few bottlenecks and more police could have been used to regulate traffic flow.
Police working for convocation center events will also check parking lots around Powers Auditorium if it has a performance the same night, Milstead said. The auditorium, which holds 2,400, is typically checked by regular beat cars, he said.
Lees said those attending events at Powers have acclimated themselves to the downtown streets and parking lots over the years and don't require the guidance now being given to convocation center crowds.
meade@vindy.com