Schaumburg police appointments aid reorganization

Schaumburg Police Chief Brian Howerton Wednesday announced the appointment of two lieutenants to the rank of police commander as part of the department’s reorganization to reduce management positions and improve its effectiveness and efficiencies.

Cmdr. Kristine Provenzano will head the traffic division and Cmdr. Dawn McDermott will lead the investigations division.

This latest reorganization will save the village more than $300,000 per year in personnel costs, according to the police department.

The department formerly was organized into three divisions, each commanded by a deputy chief who reported to the chief. With the retirement of one deputy chief last August, Howerton proposed a two-phased reorganization.

The first phase includes appointing two current lieutenants to the rank of police commander and eliminating two lieutenant positions. Deputy Chief Vince Liberio will continue to command patrol while Deputy Chief Paul Rizzo will continue to command support services.

In the future, a second phase will be implemented to eliminate the rank of lieutenant. Once this occurs, there will be three watch commanders in the patrol division, a commander in charge of the traffic investigations and support services divisions, and only one deputy chief.

Over the past three years, the police department has eliminated 24 full-time positions (18 officers and six civilians), resulting in a savings of more than $3.5 million in annual personnel costs. Even with the reductions, the number of personnel assigned to patrol and investigations has remained the same, police said.

Provenzano first joined the department in 1989, and McDermott in 1995.