Deputy Inspector Jeffrey Schiff has hit the ground running as the 106th Precinct’s new commanding officer and, after taking the reigns at the end of September, has launched battles against two of the top complaints in the area: noise complaints and blocked driveways.
“I want to involve the community,” Schiff said at the Community Board 10 meeting last Thursday. “I’ve heard a lot of really good things about this community, and I’m excited to be here.”
Schiff, who replaced Deputy Inspector Thomas Pascale, said he has been meeting with civic leaders, residents and legislators about the major problems in the precinct and said he plans on focusing on reducing noise complaints and blocked driveways, among a slew of other issues.
A 17-year veteran of the NYPD who most recently led the 76th Precinct in Brooklyn, Schiff plans on executing a multi-pronged approach to fighting noise complaints, including crafting newsletters about what is – and is not – legal for house parties and sending letters to problem residents.
Emphasizing the importance of community involvement, Schiff told residents at CB 10 that he hopes to work closely with those in the neighborhood.
“I’m here for you,” he said. “I want to hear from you; I need to know what the problems are.”
Hailing from a family of police officers, Schiff joined the NYPD at the age of 29 and quickly rose through the ranks. He graduated third out of a class of 1,492 in the city’s Police Academy and went on to begin his career in the 103rd Precinct in southeast Queens.
“I wanted to be thrown into difficult situations right away,” Schiff said of entering the 103rd.
He was promoted to sergeant just before the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, to captain in 2007 and to deputy inspector this past June. He has served in a number of different precincts, including the 68th in Bay Ridge and the 67th in East Flatbush – “one of the more volatile precincts in New York City,” Schiff noted.
While the 67th is plagued with some of the city’s highest number of shootings, Schiff said “none of my officers were hurt.
“The perpetrators, on the other hand – well…,” Schiff trailed off as chuckles rippled through the crowd.
Once in the 76th Precinct, Schiff said he and the other officers were “able to reduce shootings dramatically.
“The reason we were so down in crime in the 76th is because of community involvement,” he said, once again stressing that he wants to be in “constant contact” with the community in the 106th Precinct.
The precinct’s new executive officer, John Ganley, also introduced himself at last week’s CB 10 meeting. Ganley, who joined the NYPD in 1992 and has spent most of his career in Brooklyn, was assigned to the 106th at the same time as Schiff.
And while Ganley noted he “didn’t work in Queens a day in my life until two weeks ago,” he said he heard from police friends who have worked in the borough that he “hit a homerun going to the 106th.
“The community takes a very, very strong interest in what goes on here – that is key,” he said.
At the meeting, CB 10 Chairwoman Betty Braton welcomed Schiff and Ganley – as well as thanked Pascale for his years of service.
Pascale was a much beloved commanding officer in the 106th, returning to lead the precinct in 2010 after having served it from 2000 to 2004.
By Anna Gustafson
