Frederick police hire coordinator to handle cabs, abandoned cars

‘‘I wanted to stay involved in the city,” said Russell, a Frederick resident. ‘‘My whole adult life has been serving the city and I missed that.”

In her new role, one of Russell’s jobs is to handle the disposal of abandoned vehicles. After the department’s traffic division was dissolved, she said, the task went to the patrol unit and then became a volunteer function.

Russell said her goal is to rid abandoned vehicles from city streets in a more efficient manner. ‘‘I wouldn’t say we are inundated [with abandoned vehicles], but we get our share of them and they can be hazards,” she said.

‘‘They are not just eyesores, but a lot of the ones we handle are older with sharp edges and other pieces that could hurt people and can become habitats for vermin.”

Russell will also be charged with taxicab-related city business, including processing applications, issuing permits and handling complaints.

She is also working with the city’s Taxicab Commission as it rewrites an ordinance governing cabs in the city.

‘‘We’ve been doing the work [with taxicabs and abandoned vehicles], but this gives us the ability to do it more efficiently under one person for a greater impact,” Chief Kim C. Dine said. ‘‘We also hope this frees [other officers] to do other things ... and gives us another set of eyes and ears in the community.”

Hired in early January, Russell earns $15 per hour for her 20 hours a week, without benefits. She continues to receive retirement benefits for her previous years of service with the department.

On the job less than a month, Russell already has some ideas of how to streamline operations in line with the department’s growing use of technology. She is actively working on creating computerized publishing of taxi permits to get drivers ‘‘out on the road” in a more efficient manner.

Visitors to the police department’s Web site will soon be able to download complaint⁄compliment forms regarding drivers as well as documents to report abandoned vehicles.

As she settles into her new role, Russell said the biggest adjustment for others is not calling her ‘‘Lieutenant,” but ‘‘Kelly.”

‘‘It is really great being back here,” she said. ‘‘I think we have a wonderful organization with outstanding people.”

Special Vehicle Coordinator

* Processes taxicab applications, carriage permits and management of related complaints

* Develops and conducts training programs for taxicab drivers

* Processes abandoned vehicles

* Inspects taxicabs

* Conducts investigations into code violations

* Conducts surveys to obtain data for Taxicab Commission