Belvidere Daily Republican: FEATURED NEWS

 

Liquidation via ‘information highway’ best for BPD

Nov. 10, 2013

By Troy A. Bruzewski

Editor

BELVIDERE – The police have taken to a different highway to nab people and the effort starting with writing an item description, rather than a ticket.

The Belvidere Police Dept. is garnering financial results from its efforts on eBay, selling its decommissioned and seized vehicles. For nearly eight years, BPD has used the online location to sell various items, most recently they were of the two-wheel variety.

In October, the department listed two motorcycles that were seized; the pair of Harley-Davidsons brought a total of $9,000. The month prior, a decommissioned SUV and a seized Chevy Tracker netted $3,084.

Mayor Mike Chamberlain said using online auctions has provided numerous benefits for the city and police.

“We’ve found we do better on eBay (than one annual live auction),” he said. “It’s more effective and it’s at a lower cost.”

Annual police and city auctions were once the standard for government to alleviate itself of the accruing merchandise, but taking the effort online helps avoid the multiple potential pitfalls of relying on an auction held live.

Internet auctions present the items to a worldwide audience and aren’t affected by poor weather. One rainy day can affect a budget, when it comes to raising operating funds by a live auction.

“A live auction can go unattended, or have so few bids that they’re too low to accept,” Chamberlain said. “From the online perspective, it’s more efficient and has better success.”

And with the duration of online auctions, people who won’t be available in the auction’s closing seconds can still place their maximum bid days prior, with automatic bidding.

Chief Jan Noble said the results have been excellent for the department and the city.

“We get much more return for using eBay, than we would on a Saturday auction,” he said. “It has greatly benefitted the city and returned tax dollars to the city for items that no longer had use.”

The top bidders are required to visit the department to complete the transaction, paying by certified check or using Paypal. Noble said the reaching effect of online auctions is evident by the distances traveled by those who got the final bid. Top bidders for BPD auctions have come from at least four other states.

Chamberlain said future in-person auctions aren’t out of the question, but in the meantime residents can follow BPD auctions by accessing the seller name “belviderepolice” on eBay.

 

Retirement, promotion for BPD

Nov. 8, 2013

BELVIDERE – The Belvidere Police Dept. announced one retirement and one promotion.Sergeant Mark Pollock is being promoted to the rank of Deputy Chief of Administrative and Support Services; while Deputy Chief William Falkenstein is retiring after 25 years with the BPD.Pollock started with BPD in April, 1991 and was promoted to Sergeant in June, 1998. He’s been both Sergeant of the Detective Division and Sergeant of the Patrol Division.Falkenstein began with BPD in 1988 and was promoted to Sergeant in 1991, then promoted to Deputy Chief in 1996. .

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