Southold Town’s Police Department is set to receive just over $1 million in federal funding to replace aging patrol vehicles and upgrade portable radios — investments Police Chief Steve Grattan said will directly improve reliability, officer safety and communications across the town’s sprawling jurisdiction, which now includes Fishers Island.

“This is something we’ve been working toward since 2024, and it’s great to finally see it come through,” Grattan said on Thursday.

The funding is part of a package of Community Project Funding awards secured by U.S. Rep. Nick LaLota (R–Suffolk County) and signed into law on Jan. 23. Of the $11.8 million in project funding countywide, $871,701 is earmarked for Southold police vehicle acquisitions and $132,857 for radio upgrades.

The vehicle funding will allow the department to purchase 10 fully outfitted Ford SUV patrol vehicles, each costing roughly $80,000 once emergency lighting, radios, cages and other equipment are installed. Southold police vehicles often operate around the clock, Grattan said, making regular replacement critical.

“For the most part, they’re running 24/7,” he said. “So the mileage racks up quickly, and we are constantly replacing them.”

In addition to vehicles, the department will use the radio funding to purchase about 15 new dual-band portable radios, a significant step toward solving long-standing communication challenges.

Grattan said the awards represent the culmination of grant applications first submitted in 2024 under former Police Chief Martin Flatley and renewed last year.

The department currently maintains a fleet of about 15 SUVs, including frontline and spare vehicles. Grattan said the infusion of federal funds could allow the department to order five new vehicles this year and five more next year.

“That’ll save the town from having to fund new vehicles,” he said.

The department follows a rolling replacement cycle in which frontline vehicles are rotated out around 80,000 miles and reassigned as spares, then later shifted to traffic control use before being stripped down and auctioned off. Grattan said the new funding will allow the department to keep both frontline and spare vehicles more reliable.

The upgrades come as Southold police continue adjusting to their expanded jurisdiction after recently assuming law enforcement responsibility for Fishers Island.

“At least one new vehicle will go over there,” Grattan said. “I’d like to have something new and reliable on Fishers. Some of the older vehicles we’ve sent over there have had mechanical issues, and it can be challenging getting them back and forth or getting a mechanic over there.”

Dual-band radios

Currently, Southold police operate on a VHF radio system, while Suffolk County and some neighboring departments, including Riverhead, use an 800-megahertz system. Patrol cars carry both radios, but officers on foot must rely on portable units that do not always allow seamless communication.

“With these dual-band radios, it’s one radio that has both systems on it,” Grattan said. “It allows us to communicate with neighboring agencies and the county while still operating on our current system.”

The radios are especially important for Fishers Island, where coverage can be inconsistent. While officers can communicate from their vehicles in some locations, portable coverage is more limited.

“This gives them the ability, when they’re out of the car, to communicate with headquarters dispatch from a portable radio,” Grattan said.

The department has already purchased 30 dual-band radios through a previous grant, outfitting about half of its patrol officers. Grattan said the new funding will allow the department to acquire another 15 or so, with the goal of eventually equipping all 57 patrol officers.

“These radios are very expensive,” he said. “This gets us much closer to outfitting all of patrol.”

In announcing the funding, LaLota said the projects were designed to address specific local needs identified by municipal officials.

“These aren’t generic federal programs — these are solutions designed specifically for Suffolk County challenges,” LaLota said in a statement.

Grattan said the timing of the awards is especially welcome as the department also prepares for the construction of a new police headquarters.

Another $2.5 million of federal money for Suffolk County will help fund a new water main extension in Calverton, to provide clean drinking water to homes with private wells that have been or could be contaminated by PFAS and PFOA from the nearby former Grumman plant.