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Bergquist Named Chief Of Police, Scaturro Council President
By Keith Hagarty
January 1 was the start of a new chapter for the township council and Police Department, as four members of the governing body and a new police chief were sworn into their new posts at the council's annual reorganization meeting on Tuesday.
For the first time in 17 years, the Brick Township Police Department will have a new individual leading the force. Longtime Police Chief Ronald Dougard retired from the position last month. It was a role he had held since 1990.
The council named current Brick Police Capt. Nils R. Bergquist, 51, as the new man for the job. He was sworn into his new post earlier this week.
After beginning his law enforcement on the Seaside Heights beat in 1977, Bergquist became a member of the Ocean Gate Police Department before moving to Brick 17 years ago.
After rising to the rank of captain, Bergquist's salary will now get an additional bump up of a little over $6,000 per year as chief, an annual increase from $138,532 to $144,848.
Over the past few weeks, the council had narrowed their choice down to two candidates, Bergquist and current Brick Police Captain Doug Kinney.
Dougard attended the swearing-in ceremony to offer his support for the new chief, along with several of Bergquist's former colleagues and longtime friends, including Seaside Heights Police Chief Thomas Boyd and Toms River Police Chief Michael G. Mastronardy.
With both individuals highly qualified, the council said the town is fortunate to have such a tough choice from two individuals with such solid resumes and backgrounds.
Dougard has been a member of the township Police Department since 1972, starting out as a patrolman. While Mayor Stephen Acropolis and the council expressed their confidence in Bergquist, saying he was the right person for the job, they noted that Dougard's strong community roots in Brick will make his shoes hard to fill right away.
In other council business, Councilwoman Ruthanne Scaturro was named the new council president for 2008, with Councilman Joseph Sangiovanni being named as council vice president.
Scaturro, 56, of Halsey Drive, is a Republican, and has been a council member since 2003, and easily won her re-election bid in November, garnering the most votes out of any candidate.
A lifelong Brick resident, Scaturro is a member of the Brick Chamber of Commerce, where she served as president in 1999, a past president and current member of the Brick Rotary Club, charter member of Brick UNICO and League of Women Voters. She has earned the 2002 Good Turn Award from the Boy Scouts of America and is the director of the Brick Hospital Association. Scaturro has also earned a bachelor of arts degree from Cabrini College, and is married with six children and three grandchildren.
With Republican Mayor Stephen Acropolis elected to office in November, Scaturro said she is optimistic about the direction of Brick going forward into the new year with a focus on bringing in more clean tax ratables to further help offset the increasing pressure on taxpayers.
Fellow GOP council members Michael A. Thulen and Anthony Matthews also took their oaths of office, along with newcomer Councilman Brian DeLuca. DeLuca has been on the board of the education since 2001, having served two terms from 2001 to 2004, and 2006-2007.
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