WATERFORD, Wis. — The Town of Waterford has a new police chief after nearly two years. They've been without an acting chief since January 2024.
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Timothy O'Neill was sworn in and welcomed Monday during a town board meeting, bringing 20 years of experience from the Village of Sturtevant Police Department to his new role. O'Neill officially started October 1.
Monday was an opportunity for the community to get to know him and what he's looking forward to.
"Just building the department back with the community, finding out exactly what the community wants of their police department and putting something together with that and the other community leaders to give this community exactly what they need," said O'Neill in an off-camera interview with TMJ4.
Watch: How some residents are reacting as Town of Waterford welcomes new police chief
One of O'Neill's main priorities is rebuilding the department with help from residents. The new police chief said he will have an open-door policy, inviting the community to share their concerns and expectations for the police department.
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He's already started to hear from residents what they want out of their police force.
"They want them involved in the community, involved in the community events, patrolling the neighborhoods and being that face of the community," said O'Neill.
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The announcement brings hope to residents like Tanya Maney, who has been advocating for the department's restoration.
"I feel so encouraged," Maney said.
Maney said she's optimistic about the new leadership and its potential impact on the community.
"I'm really ready and hopeful that having this chief here now in place, is just going to bring unity and healing that we so desperately need," Maney said.
The division in the community stems from the previous town board's decision to contract with the Racine County Sheriff's Office earlier this year.
That decision followed several internal investigations into officers and a dwindling police force that was reduced to just a handful of officers at times.
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The situation changed after the April election brought a board shake-up and new leadership to the town.
Former town chair Teri Jendusa-Nicolai, who supported contracting with the sheriff's office, attended Monday night's meeting. While she wants to see O'Neill succeed, she remains concerned about the town's ability to afford its own police department.
"Two things, safety and finances, those are still my concerns," Jendusa-Nicolai said.
She outlined several financial challenges ahead for the department.
"They still have officers that they need to put in place. They still need to make sure they're covering all their shifts. They still need training. They still need body cameras. There's other things that are going to come down the pike that are going to cost money," Jendusa-Nicolai said.
She plans to watch upcoming budget meetings closely to monitor the department's financial needs.
O'Neill expressed gratitude to the officers who remained with the department and kept it functioning during the transition period.
This story was reported on-air by Mike Beiermeister and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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