SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO : Sheriff’s Department Contract Is Renewed

The City Council has renewed a five-year contract with the Sheriff’s Department for law enforcement services.

Under the contract approved Tuesday night, an additional deputy will be hired and a community-policing program will be launched for the fiscal year beginning July 1.

The program, which puts deputies on foot and bicycle instead of in a squad car, will target neighborhoods with higher than average crime rates and gang activity.

The city will pay the Sheriff’s Department $2.8 million for police services for fiscal year 1995-96, an increase of $210,231 over the previous year.

City Manager George Scarborough said that the additional deputy and higher costs for a commercial vehicle enforcement program were the main reasons for the police services budget increase.

In the past, the city has divided costs for the commercial vehicle program with Dana Point and Laguna Niguel.

But officials in Laguna Niguel now want to spend their share on crime prevention, Scarborough said.

The change means San Juan Capistrano will have to spend an extra $17,000, Scarborough said.

It will cost $151,500 to hire the deputy and start the community-policing program, according to Cynthia Pendleton, the city’s administrative services director.