Prospect Heights finalizes contract to bring back laid off cops

Front and center among Nick Helmer’s goals when he ran for Prospect Heights mayor was to resolve the impasse between the city and its police union.

On Friday, about a month after he took over the reins from former mayor Dolly Vole — and two years since the old police contract expired — Helmer and police union leadership put their signatures on a new four-year agreement, including the two years that had already expired.

Helmer said that the expired two years and the third year include no pay increases. Officers will receive a 2 percent salary hike in year four.

The agreement enables the city to hire back some of the full-time officers it let go in November. It also gives the city some flexibility with personnel, allowing it to hire part-time officers.

“This is obviously the best news that the city has had in years,” Helmer said Sunday. “The first thing I vowed to do when I came into office was to straighten out the police contract, meet with the police union to get an agreement that’s mutually acceptable and get the contract signed. And we have done all that.”

Three of the laid-off officers already have returned to their jobs, two as full-timers, one as a part-timer. They were hired back Tuesday after the city council approved the new contract at its Monday meeting.

Prospect Heights police Chief Jamie Dunne said the week’s developments will have a positive impact.

“We will be able to reduce overtime dramatically, and we’ll be able to properly relieve the shifts and put additional personnel on the street,” he said.

The financial impact “should be budget neutral,” he emphasized.

“But it will have a positive impact on the street, and it will also free up current staff to re-engage themselves in other law enforcement activities.”

Dunne said police can now be more involved in follow-up investigations and “become a little bit more proactive, as opposed to reactive.”

The contract calls for the hiring of five police officers — two full-time and three part-time — with the positions being offered first to the laid-off officers.

Dunne said three of the officers laid off last year have found other employment.

He said he will wait until after reviewing the impact of the new hires on the budget before hiring the two other part-time officers allowed under the contract.

But Helmer said, “Our goal is to get five of the six terminated officers back as soon as possible.”

Helmer noted that the officer who was rehired on a part-time basis will be working up to 36 hours a week. He said he wants to see all the rehired officers work full time eventually.

The city’s force now consists of 18 full-time officers, including the chief, and one part-time officer.