City Considers Elimination of Police Dispatch

The is exploring the possibility of outsourcing its police dispatch services to Pittsfield Township.

Chief Paul Bunten informed the department of the plan at a staff meeting Monday morning. The department has three full-time dispatchers, Jean Bondie, Don Terry and Sandy Wood. There are also five part-time dispatchers. Bunten said the department spends $250,000 annually on dispatch services, a figure he hopes to cut in half by contracting out the work to Pittsfield Township. The move, still in planning stages, could take place in a year’s time.

“I have a lot of concern for my dispatchers. They’ve been here a long time and they’ve been very good employees. But this is a sign of the times,” said Bunten, who said he told dispatchers last week to give them 12 months to make other arrangements.

He said the city and township will spend the next 12 months ironing out an agreement and procedural and policy issues.

“If we can’t build a process that will deliver the same kind of service that we provide now, we’ll pull the plug,” Bunten said. “But quite honestly, I think you’ll see something happen here.”

The move drew criticism of the Saline Police Officer’s Association.

“Our position is that this is a bad idea and it’s unnecessary for a small cost savings,” said SPOA President Chris Boulter.

Boulter said the dispatchers were a vital part of the Saline Police Department.

“Our dispatchers are well trained and professional. They do a lot more than answer the phone and send us on calls,” Boulter said. “They know the city. They know the people. They know the officers and they are in tune with our policies, procedures and our city code.”

Boulter said the dispatcher's understanding of the city was crucial.

“We have certain individuals in town who our dispatchers know. When they get a call, they know how to handle it. That kind of knowledge is tough to replace,” Boulter said.

Boulter said losing the 24-hour presence in the police station would have another impact.

“People in town know they can come up to the station at 2 in the morning if someone is following them. If we lose our dispatch, they’d have to pick up the phone and wait for a car to come by,” he said.

Jean Bondie, one of three full-time dispatchers, was disappointed to hear her job might be eliminated

“I love this job. I’ve lived here all my life, and I like the idea that when people are calling in, we’re helping them. It feels good at the end of the day to know that you’re helping people in your town and that you’re making it a better place,” said Bondie. “A lot of the people we talk to aren’t calling to report a crime. They’re calling because they need help and they don’t know where else to call.”

Bunten said the city would explore contracting the service to the Washtenaw Sheriff’s Department, but that he didn’t expect the department could meet Saline’s needs.

“It’s nothing against the Sheriff’s Department. They do a fine job. But I don’t think they have the time to work on the kind of calls for service that we take in Saline and Pittsfield,” Bunten said, referring to calls about lost dogs and other smaller issues. “I think Pittsfield Township is more on our plain and understands the type of service we provide to our residents.”

Bunten said other city departments have made sacrifices over the last few years, and that it was time for the police department, which he said makes up 28 percent of the city’s general fund budget, to do the same.

“City-wide, we've cut 10 employees. Until now, (the police department) been able to cut budget without reducing our staff. But at some point, we were going to be asked to cut. I do not want to cut any officers on the street because that is our direct conduit with people we serve,” Bunten said

He said the city and Pittsfield, as well as other local departments, began talking about ways to share resources last year. From those talks, Saline and Pittsfield began training together at some cost savings.

Pittsfield Township Supervisor Mandy Grewal said the final agreement must meet two litmus test goals to meet her board's approval.

“It must ensure we continue public safety service levels to Pittsfield Township residents at existing or enhanced levels,” Grewal said. “And it must provide these services at a reasonable cost.”

Grewal said she’s confident, based on her conversations with Department of Public Safety Director Matt Harshberger, this will be the case.

“He assured me that this would be very likely to meet the dual objectives,” said Grewal. “I think it’s a good thing for us to continue the exploration of combining dispatch services.”

Gov. Rick Snyder has emphasized the importance of municipalities sharing services and even tied revenue sharing levels to consolidation. City Manager Todd Campbell said he expected local governments to continue to investigate ways to share resources to provide residents with services.

Saline police dispatch handles local 9-1-1 calls made on landlines, as well as general inquiries of the the police department.

Dispatchers are also responsible for record management and other clerical tasks. Bunten said he expected a clerical worker would be hired to do perform some of those tasks.