Housing authority beefing up security

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - A new mission has been launched to improve the quality of life for residents of Buffalo's municipal housing.

The Buffalo Municipal Housing Authority has been depending on the Buffalo Police Department to patrol it's housing developments, since federal budget cuts forced the Housing Authority to fire its police officers back in 2005.

Now a private agency is offering to take up the slack.

Officials for the firm called the Metro Housing Protection Agency made their pitch at City Hall, Tuesday.

They are a private, not-for-profit law enforcement corporation, looking to get a contract with the BMHA to put full-time patrols back into the projects.

Jim Ward said, "We are going to be able to get government grants and money that a regular police department, and an agency like BMHA cannot get. So that was the reason for the not-for-profit. Moving forward, our officers are going to be able to do everything that a regular Buffalo police officer can do. They just cannot issue warrants."

The Buffalo Municipal Housing Authority's executive director, Dawn Sanders, told News 4, they have met with a number of police agencies, including Jim Ward's group.

The BMHA is upgrading security, and bringing back a police force is just one of several options being considered.