Before the Madera Police Department could show off its newest, shiniest toy, it was already put to use during an officer-involved shooting investigation.
The Madera Police Department had a ribbon cutting for its new Mobile Command Post on Monday morning, after the unit was used in the field the day before.
“It was critical on the interview portion,” said City of Madera Chief of Police, Gino Chiaramonte. “We used to do interviews in a room or force them to come to the PD. Logistically, we have to get them rides, and make sure they make it. They feel uncomfortable in a police car. We were able to put them in the back section and have a cool, quiet area to be able to do interviews in a professional manner. We ran the drone out of there to video the scene. It was really impactful. For me, to be able to take a break, and have a cool space to relax and take a deep breath while we are working through stuff was great.”
The Mobile Command Post was first put to use at the fair where the department worked the kinks out. Then, MPD showed it off at last week’s Old Timers’ Day Parade. The next day, it was put to use at the officer-involved shooting.
“This is a state-of-the art asset that elevates how we will respond and coordinate to protect our community during these critical incidents,” Chiaramonte said. “Our old command post was a mobile trailer that we made work for a number of years. The previous one was a toy hauler. The old one will be going to the trash. We are going to dispose of it.”
The purchase of the Mobile Command Post would not have been done without the help of outgoing State Senator Anna Caballero, who secured $950,000 in funding for three projects at the Madera Police Department.
“Over the years, it’s been a real pleasure to work together to be able to make things happen on so many different projects,” Caballero said Monday. “From my years in local government, I know how difficult it is for cities to meet everyday needs, particularly in public safety. That’s why I made the state leaders listen to help them with their priorities. During state budget negotiations, I asked Madera city leadership what the city needed. Based on the conversations, we were able to secure $950,000 for three priorities — a command center and equipment, police parking improvements, and $300,000 to fund a Safety Clean team.”
The extra funding from Senator Caballero helped the City through hard times.
“There’s only so much we can do as local electives,” said Madera Mayor Cece Gallegos. “But, our partners at the state and federal levels make a difference. We are going to miss Senator Caballero. She has been a true champion for the City of Madera. This command center is the No. 1 thing we need in Madera.”
Caballero, whose term in the Senate ends in November, was proud to have worked with this, and many other projects with Madera, including current Mayor Gallegos and former Mayor Santos Garcia.
“As my time in the senate ends in November, I reflect on the people I’ve had the privilege to work alongside,” Caballero said. “Madera will always have a special place in my heart. My brother-in-law lived in Madera for 35 years, and his two sons graduated from Madera High School. It’s hard to get tickets to graduation without a call to the Mayor.
“I would also be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge my deer, departed friend, Mayor Santos Garcia. I wish he could be here with us today. We worked together on a lot of projects and got resources for the city. He cared deeply for Madera. It was a privilege to me to work alongside him at the City Council. They all do yeoman’s work with very little resources.
“It’s bittersweet to be ending this chapter. I want to continue to do good things in the Central Valley. Count on me to be there. Thank you for your trust and opportunity to serve. It’s been a honor to represent Madera.”
One of the things Caballero has been working on is teaming with Madera City Manager Arnoldo Rodriguez to establish a Safety Clean team, and equip them with the resources they need to help Madera, but also work on the Fresno River.
“We are going to have a major problem with El Niño,” Chiaramonte said. “The Senator and the City Manager had a vision of cleaning up an eyesore for many in our community. It was difficult with the number of encampments that weren’t touched during the pandemic. We had fires, medical emergencies, animal attacks. It was overgrown and dangerous. We had fires as a result of the encampments that took two of our citizen’s homes. It was the vision of the City Manager to form the Safety Clean Team, purchase the equipment needed to provide a safe place in the river. It’s beautiful, and not an eyesore anymore.”
“I really want to emphasize that Safety Clean Team project,” Caballero said. “This year, we are expecting several El Niño storms to hit. Those storms always end up hitting rural areas. Many times, we are not prepared because the work has not been done to clear up creeks, riverbeds or waterways because you need a permit. The state has to issue it. Now, we have a reason. We have atmospheric rivers that are likely to hit, and we need to be prepared. We need resources to be able to go in and clean out the rivers to make sure it’s safe, and not hurt the public is really important.”
The new parking lot is located next to the Madera Police Department, but there were some hurdles MPD had to jump through in order to get the parking lot built.
“The lot was originally a dirt lot when we asked for the money,” Chiaramonte said. “With the help of our City Engineer Steve Bettencourt, he took the lead on this. This dirt lot was problematic. We found out we had a canal running underneath the dirt lot. It took an engineer to figure how to park something like this command post without getting the ground to collapse underneath us. Thank you, Steve, for all the work you did to provide a secure location for our officers and equipment. It may seem like a small thing, but it’s a huge piece in the expansion and growth of the police department.”
However, the biggest investment was $500,000 to purchase the new Mobile Command Center.
“It provides public safety officers with modern work stations, access to information systems, live drone data and dedicated communication to crisis negotiators,” Caballero said. “These are going to be critically important to help the police department to prepare and be proactive to protect the public. Whether they are responding to storms, natural disasters, assisting neighboring agencies or preparing for huge city events like the Fair, they need the right equipment to do their jobs safely and effectively. As Madera grows, this becomes even more critically important.”
Chiaramonte pointed out the work of Commander Josiah Arnold and Lieutenant Mark Adams, who picked out every detail of the vehicle.
The old command center was a converted toy hauler that had its limitations.
“If anybody has worked in our space, it had an AC that spit at us,” Chiaramonte said. “For anyone that has worked in the 100 degree summers under stress, you need a cool space to decompress, take a deep breath and have a work space to make sound decisions out of. That wasn’t it. It met the need at the time and what our capabilities and resources were. We definitely needed to bring us into the next century when it came to how we are able to respond to critical incidents.”
In addition, the old command center was a trailer, so it would take about 30-35 minutes to set up.
“It took valuable minutes to position it, disconnect it, level it and stabilize it before we could even set it up,” Chiaramonte said.
Then, the generator took propane, and when the propane would run out, MPD officers had to make a run to the grocery store to pick up more.
“Just looking at the capability difference, inside, it was super cramped, super noisy. The air conditioning was subpar for our officers and what they were doing,” Chiaramonte said.
Now, there are no trailer hook-ups and the vehicle has its own power supply, in addition to a soundproof room used for crisis negotiations or interviews.
“There are no trailer hook-ups, so there are no delays,” Chiaramonte said. “A single operator drives it, parks it, and it’s ready to go. This vehicle provides a safe place for the witnesses. When we were doing critical interviews in the field, we were doing interviews in a bedroom that was totally unprofessional, or ask them to drive to headquarters, which would take up critical time. Now, we can bring this out, and have a safe place for our investigators to interview.”
The vehicle also had a space to place two dispatchers on scene and an interactive space to use for drones.
“We had a call about a dead body on a roof a couple of days ago,” Chiaramonte said. “ We set this up, and our drone officer deployed the drone from here. We were able to fly the drone over the top, and see what the reporting party saw that it was a false alarm. It shows how quickly we can all come together and have eyes on the scene.”
With a state-of-the art command center, the Madera Police Department can move into the future to help the community.
“Whether it’s modernizing our infrastructure, restoring safety, beautifying the river bottom or this cutting-edge command post, this is our promise to our residents that when they need us most, your first responders are equipped, prepared, and ready to protect this community with professionalism and care,” Chiaramonte said.
“I’m proud of these investments that support both emergency and response intervention,” Caballero said. “To our officers, you have my gratitude and appreciation. I want you to have the equipment, resources and information you need to serve this community.”