Claiming it will save money and not diminish police protection, Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano announced Monday that the county's eight police precincts will merge into four.

Four Precincts, including the Seventh, which covers Massapequa and Massapequa Park, will remain intact, while the Eighth Precinct, which covers areas in North Massapequa will be one of four precincts transformed into new community policing centers, Mangano said. 

The Second Precinct in Woodbury, Third Precinct in Williston Park and Fourth Precinct in Hewlett will continue to operate as regular precincts, while the First Precinct in Baldwin, Fifth Precinct in Elmont and Sixth Precinct in Manhasset will become community policing centers, according to a release from the county.

Mangano's plan, which he says will save the county nearly $20 million, will extend the Second Precinct's coverage area into Massapequa.

"Keeping residents safe is my number-one priority," Mangano said. "This plan keeps all 177 patrols cars in their current neighborhoods, assigns more cops to POP and opens four new community policing centers throughout the county while increasing efficiencies."

Mangano's proposal was immediately met with derision. James Carver, President of the Nassau PBA, told 1010 WINS he is going to fight the plan.

"We currently have eight police precincts and they're trying to tell everybody that having four police precincts is a better way to police Nassau County, well they're dead wrong on this," Carver said.

Nassau Legislator Joseph Belesi, R-Farmingdale, said he plans to take the week to carefully review the full plan. Belesi is a retired Nassau County Police Department supervisor who was recently re-elected to the 14th Legislative District seat after a tight race November.

"If the county executive is going to keep the same number of patrol cars, it could work, but I need to see the full plan," Belesi said.

New York State Senator Kemp Hannon, R-Garden City, also declined to comment.

Nearby, Nassau Legislator Judy Jacobs, D-Woodbury, said this was a “terrible” time to alter police procedures when the Plainview and Syosset areas were filled with concerns about rising crime and burglaries. While not doubting that some precincts have heavier caseloads than others, there are other factors to consider, she said.

"And he said some of these are going to remain as 'police community centers.' she said. “I have no idea what that phrase means."

Mangano plan eliminates more than 100 desk jobs and slashes "costly" built-in overtime benefits, said Mangano at a press conference, flanked by Police Commissioner Thomas Dale. A total of 48 police officers will be reassigned from desk jobs to Problem Oriented Police (POP) positions.

While the number of precincts and desk jobs will shrink, Mangano said the number of patrol cars will remain the same.

The plan, which could take six months to implement, corrects a "workload imbalance," Mangano claimed. He said three police precincts presently perform twice the workload of the remaining five precincts.

"This plan saves taxpayers significant dollars while streamlining duplicative work, redistributing workload and assigning more officers to POP and special patrol," Dale said. "... Residents should know that response time will not be impacted as police officers will remain in their current neighborhoods and additional officers will be assigned to our neighborhoods."