Marijuana Policy Project

BARRE Police Chief Tim Bombardier had been in his new job for two weeks and one day when he made a loud, visible public statement about his tolerance for illicit drug activity in this city. Working with state and federal law enforcement officials, Barre City Police participated in the largest drug sweep in Vermont's history.

Dubbed Operation Granite Streets, nearly 30 suspected drug dealers and purchasers in Central Vermont most in Barre were arrested in the high-profile sting. Bombardier said at the time that Operation Granite Streets was only a first step.

"We're not just going to close up shop after today," he said on Dec. 19, the day of the sweep.

He's been on the job almost three months, and the new police chief sounds just as determined to make Barre a safer city.

"I want to continue to move forward," the chief said last week, seated in his office, surrounded by photographs of his family. "We're not trying to make it like the good old days. We're trying to move forward."

The list of first-steps is fairly impressive for a three-month time frame.

Since Bombardier took office on Dec. 4, he has launched a Neighborhood Watch steering committee to implement that citizen-driven safety initiative; contributed to the formation of the Greater Barre Public Safety Citizens Advisory Committee; tapped drug forfeiture money to upgrade equipment for the police force; reapplied for expiring federal grant money to improve radio, video and data technology in cruisers; and more.

Last week, the City Council approved a curfew requiring young people under 16 to be off the streets after 10 p.m. It is a controversial proposal and has plenty of critics, but is clearly designed to send a signal that Barre means business in its fight to keep the streets safer at night.

Bombardier has also held public forums with citizens to talk about their expectations from their new chief and discuss safety concerns, and met with local business and civic groups, as well.

At virtually every meeting, he said, he hears the three same concerns.

"The big drug bust. They want to know how did we get to that point, and I don't have an answer to why nothing was done" prior to Operation Granite Streets, he said. When he took the job, he said, hand-to-hand drug deals were "common practice on Main Street."

There are still drug deals going on, the chief added. "People say the drug deals went inside, and I totally agree," he added. The drug bust, in combination with Vermont's winter weather, has driven the deals off the streets.

"Anybody would be naïve to believe that sweep dealt with the drug problem in Barre," Bombardier said. But, he added, stay tuned for more law enforcement action on that front, most likely in conjunction with the state's Drug Task Force.

The second issue for the public has been if the force has enough officers. There are 18 full-time personnel when the city police force is fully staffed; currently he has 16 officers and is working to fill the vacancies. He is candid in saying he needs more, including at least another detective and a drug investigator. He'd also like an animal control officer (now police officers deal with dog and cat calls weekly; even one call for a snake problem), and two city-funded school resources officers.

"Budget time is coming," Bombardier said. "I'm not going to sugarcoat it."

Finally, he said, people ask the basic: Is Barre safe?

"Is Barre as safe as it was 25 years ago? Those days are gone regardless of whether you live in Barre, Northfield or Burlington," he said. Today people must lock their doors for safety reasons; years ago that was unthinkable for many Vermonters. "Those days are gone.

"Barre is different than it was 25 years ago, but that difference is everywhere," he said. He lives in Richmond, and his daughter recently wanted to go out walking at night after the snowstorm. "I said, 'Take a dog with you.'"

He doesn't dispute that Barre has a public image problem, even within its own citizenry.

"At some point, the city felt bad about itself," Bombardier said. "Some of it is justified; but some of it's not."

Part of the problem is the number of people who come to the city from elsewhere because Barre offers the social services they require, from the District courthouse, to the Department of Children and Families offices, to the probation and parole offices.

"Where do you come to? Barre," he said.

He's committed to changing that negative perception of this city.

Bombardier made a public promise that most calls to his department would be handled by an officer in person; he believes that most are. He wants Neighborhood Watch up and running around the city, and has called on residents to report illegal activity they spot (he said legitimate calls have been received).

In addition, the chief is frustrated that state and federal funding to improve the downtown has stalled. He wants better lighting, vibrant businesses that attract shopping traffic into the evenings, and nicer sidewalks and roads.

"Twenty years ago, everybody came to Barre to go shopping on Friday and Saturday nights. People came here to eat. But Montpelier had its sidewalks rolled up at 6 o'clock," he said. "Now between 6 and 11, Barre looks like the streets were rolled up, except for the drinking establishments and some stores."

Sounding a little bit like the man who hired him Mayor Thom Lauzon Bombardier said the project has been talked to death, literally. In all the years of haggling about the project, it certainly appears the funding has been reduced or even dried up.

"It got talked into the ground," he said. "I'm all for conversation. But there comes a time when you just make it happen."

That time is now, he added.

How will the public judge his success at the end of his first year in the job, the chief is asked.

The questions to ask are clear, he responded: Are his officers better equipped and responding quickly to calls? Has the public perception of Barre improved? And has the police force made progress in reducing the drug activity in the city?

Most importantly, he adds, "Are people safer."

Stay tuned.