Washtenaw County board agrees to Ypsilanti Township's request to eliminate 7 deputies
The Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners agreed tonight to allow Ypsilanti Township to eliminate seven deputies from its contract with the county Sheriff’s Department.
The township had contracted for 38 deputies through 2011 at a cost of $144,802 per deputy. But the township says it can no longer afford them after voters defeated a proposed police millage in November, and the township struggles with a declining industrial tax base and property values.
Commissioner Jeff Irwin was the lone no vote, but the board largely agreed with him in saying a policy on how to deal with similar situations must be established.
“This is likely going to set a pattern and others are going to come in and diminish their public safety,” Irwin said.
Ypsilanti Township will soon have seven fewer deputies on patrol.
Commissioner Ken Schwartz concurred it could set a precedent and called voting for the amendment a difficult decision.
“We might be going down a slippery slope here,” he said. “I think it’s a one time deal.”
Several commissioners said the decision was made slightly easier by the fact that all seven deputies would be reassigned instead of laid off. But they recognized the scenario might be different next time a municipality comes to the county asking to change the terms of its contract.
Ypsilanti Township has been hit particularly hard by GM closing its Willow Run plant and a higher than average drop in property values. Voters rejected the four-year, 2-mill tax levy put before them on the November ballot.
Several commissioners said they heard Ypsilanti Township planned to put a new millage before voters in August, but no township officials were available to confirm that was under consideration.
Others questioned why Ypsilanti Township isn’t paying for the deputies out of its general fund and pointed to the stress that taking any deputies off the streets will put on law enforcement as a whole in the county.
“We know that proactive policing has a much better impact than reactive,” Commissioner Conan Smith said. “Our capacity to do proactive work across the county is going to be diminished right away."
He added he thought public safety should be more of a priority with the Ypsilanti Township board.
“I don’t agree with their prioritization, but I do think we have a responsibility to respect their decision,” he said.
Sheriff Jerry Clayton said he's glad the county is allowing the township to amend the contract to pay for 31 deputies, and said he's looking at it as an opportunity to examine how police services are delivered in Washtenaw County.
“This decision just really accelerated a conversation I wanted to have,” he said.
He also said he was concerned not enough attention has been paid to policing in the short and long-term, and he was pleased no one got laid off.
“If you take those officers off that streets, that increases the pressure on those who remain,” he said. "I don’t care what uniform you are wearing, we have to think about the Washtenaw County community as a whole.”
Washtenaw County Administrator Bob Guenzel echoed Clayton, and said the sheriff’s department and county need to sit down and address the concerns as soon as possible.
“The challenge for us is in the long run is if you diminish the amount of police services, it’s going to make sheriff’s job a lot tougher," Guenzel said.
Tom Perkins is a freelance writer for AnnArbor.com. Reach the news desk at news@annarbor.com or 734-623-2530.
Comments
Sandy Castle
Tue, Dec 8, 2009 : 12:07 p.m.
The Ann Arbor Oberserver has a section that shows an area map and pinpoints where the crimes take place and what category those crimes fall in. There are far greater incidents of crime in Ann Arbor than are reported here, or previously in the Ann Arbor News. That's not to say that we in Ypsilant (City and Township) don't have our fair share, but what is reported in the Ann Arbor News venues is not a fair representation of all the crime that occurs.
tdw
Tue, Dec 8, 2009 : 10:11 a.m.
Thinkplease Please don't think I was attacking what you said I, infact agree with you.All I was trying to point out that any time there is anything about Ypsi/or the township is reported that is negitive people want to pile on Ypsi.And there are bad spots in Ypsi city,the Twp,or areas near.Over all the city or the Twps are not as bad as some like to think
dading dont delete me bro
Tue, Dec 8, 2009 : 9:17 a.m.
i will be dialing.45cal myself
thinkplease
Tue, Dec 8, 2009 : 8:31 a.m.
tdw, I am not sure what it was about my posting that elicited your response. But I do know you have incorrectly perceived the tone and reason for it. My opinions are based on a quick summation of the stories I read on this site. Perhaps that is wrong of me to do but my lack of time to do statistical research is why I am in the "Comments" section. My post was an initiation of discussion concerning a local government's policies, and nothing to do with some irrelevant, "who is better," insecurity. The point of my post is simply that the people of Ypsi Township deserve to have their elected officials consider them in their decision making. Cutting law enforcement seems dangerous given the perceived, and surely the actual, crime rates. Why is the safety of the public always the first thing put on the chopping block?
glimmertwin
Tue, Dec 8, 2009 : 8 a.m.
And guess what firm STILL represents the township? The same one that cost all that money, without a single victory. Talk about catching a ride on the gravy train...
jondhall
Tue, Dec 8, 2009 : 7:33 a.m.
LEGAL FEES, certainly not to law firm of Winters and McLain? Who would have authorized that to SUE, SUE, SUE and never collect a dime. Imagine that, that is hard to believe. Well maybe, just maybe, we can Cut Legal Fees, just and idea!! If might catch on, and by the way thanks for the nice Manger scene at the Township Hall, and MERRY CHRISTMAS to all. I remember as a child growing up how I looked forward to that manger scene, maybe they should more the township back to Ecorse Road, just maybe! Imagine t hat would that save money?
Steve Hendel
Tue, Dec 8, 2009 : 6:41 a.m.
Irony abounds! It wasn't that long ago that Ypsi Twp (along with other units) was suing the County for allegedly not following proper (legal) procedures in altering the terms of the contract for deputy services, and tossing away hundreds if thousands of dollars of the Township's money on legal fees in the process. Now, they ASK the County for a unilateral change in the contract!
tdw
Mon, Dec 7, 2009 : 11:37 p.m.
Oh and one more thing. ThinkPlease sorry but the other area happens to be within the city limits
tdw
Mon, Dec 7, 2009 : 11:27 p.m.
First,before all the " we are so much better than you" people begin crawling out of the woodwork to make snide and condesending remarks about Ypsi and/or the Twp. you may want to use your superior intelect to look into where the vast majority of crimes happen.Most are in two basic areas.Even nieghborhoods direcetly across the street from said areas do not have near the same crime rate. Just a thought before you lump a entire city and townships together By the way one of these areas is not even Ypsi township,its superior twp
thinkplease
Mon, Dec 7, 2009 : 10:24 p.m.
When will the governments of this country stop requiring the lower-middle and middle classes to absorb every negative turn in the economy? Crime in Ypsi seems bad enough but appears to have a fraction of the crime in the township. Yet these government officials elected to serve the people refuse to do so. Yes, the millage was voted down, but it was voted down because people are struggling to pay the bills. Ironically enough it could be postulated this is the same reason crime is up. As for "for the people by the people," it seems the county officials have forgotten that fact. Godspeed Ypsi Township. For now I'll consider myself lucky I live in Ypsi and still have some conceivable level of Police Protection.