by Max Marbut
Staff Writer
“I know Downtown is made up of a core group of people. A huge part of my job will be to get to know them and for them to get to know me,” said Lt. Mike Bruno of the Jacksonville Sheriffs Office. The reason he will be getting to know the people who live and work Downtown is Bruno has been assigned to Patrol Division East/Zone 1. The zone is bounded by I-95 on the west and the Trout and St. Johns rivers on the north, east and south.
Bruno is a 14-year veteran of the JSO and has served in patrol and task force divisions. He has also been an instructor at the JSO firing range and a member of the bomb squad.
Since public safety is a 24/7 enterprise, Bruno, who is primarily scheduled Monday - Friday from sunup to sundown, has a counterpart, Lt. Benny Reagor. He primarily handles night and weekend duty and has been working in Zone 1 since 2003. Both are likely to be on watch at any time however, said Assistant Chief J. R. Ross.
“Core city policing is different than policing other areas. We have parking issues when there are special events and a dense population due to the high-rises. This zone also contains Jacksonville’s only government complex and the only sports complex. We schedule our shifts and zones to ensure overlap coverage. There’s a total of 120 officers assigned to Zone 1 and about half are on duty at any given time,” he said.
Vikki Wilkins and her husband, Terry, own and operate the UPS Store on Hogan Street, a half-block from Hemming Plaza. She said having JSO on the street is an invaluable asset to Downtown.
“It’s absolutely imperative to have the JSO walking the beat in the neighborhood,” said Wilkins. “It gives us a chance to get to know them and them the chance to get to know us. It makes it much easier to get solutions to issues when you have that kind of relationship.”
“I plan to continue the tradition established by the officers who have served in this zone before me. Our mission is to improve the quality of life for people who live and work here or have a business Downtown,” said Bruno.
He will represent the JSO at Downtown Vision, Inc.’s quarterly operations meeting Wednesday at 9 a.m. in the Multipurpose Room on the Conference Level at the Main Library. All who have an interest or are interested in Downtown and its issues are invited to attend.
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