Use this search box to find articles that have run in our newspapers over the last several years.
Date: 12/5/2023
LEVERETT — Police Chief Scott Minkler met with the Leverett-Wendell Advisory Police Services Oversight Committee on Nov. 27 to start his department’s budgeting for fiscal year 2025, that begins July 1, 2024. The big news? The regional arrangement for police services with Wendell, in its third year, has a number for an equitable budget split.
The review of the process last week may be an early model for regionalization. Many smaller departments may be forced to regionalize in the future by the requirements of the police reform act of 2020.
“It’s going to be very difficult for small communities to maintain the level of services they currently have. Finance wise, employees wise, the state had their police reform that was passed back in 2020,” Minkler said. “We’ve taken a hit with that. Since June of last year we’ve lost three part-timers.”
Minkler will be pushing for a fourth full-time police officer to serve the two towns. The chief can’t get enough officers to work shifts. In the past, about half-a-dozen part-timers filled in. Now, those shifts are not being covered, and may not be covered until another full-time officer is hired.
A second budget impact, beyond salary, is that full-time officers get employee benefits. According to an informal survey of police chiefs in the area, benefits can add $8,000 to $15,000 to the cost of each full-time officer, depending on the benefits. The merger of the two departments was also complicated because Wendell’s police services had to better align with those offered by Leverett’s force, triggering a cost increase.
“When I took over their budget was only $45,000 total,” Minkler said. “It took us about two-and-a-half years to take a good look at those numbers, to see where Wendell was and what services they actually needed and were using.”
The increase in services for Wendell induced a significant increase in the cost of policing. Minkler explained the new services pushed the Wendell police budget to jump by about $20,000. Half of that initial increase was built into the Wendell town budget last year, when the Police Department budget in Leverett was divided, with Wendell billed for 35.9 percent of total police costs.
The towns have been operating under a memorandum of agreement. Wendell Selectboard Chair Gillian Budine turned the committee’s attention to Section 4 of the contract.
“I’d like to stay as tight to the agreement as we can, so we can see if it’s working,” Budine said. “That … rate should be looked into, to see if it makes sense.”
A percentage of 39.5% was discussed as the final share Wendell will pay of Leverett’s overall police budget, going forward. Minkler said that percentage split was arrived at by Mike Edwards from the Collins Center. The figure will translate into a doubling of police costs for the neighboring town in the near future. Wendell’s total costs next year will be about $94,000.
Minkler spoke with Town Administrator Margie McGinnis. Together, they sought a budget number for Wendell police services of $74,841. According to the discussion, McGinnis also said Leverett will be seeking an overall budget increase of 2.5 percent over last year, which will impact Wendell as well.
Committee member Jed Proujansky suggested that the budget increase shouldn’t be too big.
“If the numbers are too sharp an increase, look at guardrails,” Proujanski said. “Try to limit the percent of increase … so that this won’t destroy any town’s budget. It’s a transition period and we should keep that in mind so that no town gets hammered.”
Committee member Patricia Duffy, representing the Selectboard, then opened discussion of the ongoing problem, in both towns, of hiring an animal control officer. The towns previously shared a control officer. Minkler said the Police Department is currently handling those calls in Leverett. Duffy commented that residents may not have a realistic idea of how much a control officer would cost. Leverett budgets $1,500 a year for a control officer. Committee member Anna Wetherby offered that in Wendell that figure is $300 yearly.
Chief Minkler told the committee a hybrid police cruiser will be in the field in about three weeks. The town is transferring equipment from an old cruiser to the new Ford. The department will also field a solar powered radar trailer in the spring.
Minkler also informed the board that he accepted an honor from the Massachusetts Association of Police Chiefs, a six-year commitment that will eventually lead to the presidency of the organization. Minkler will serve the next two years as second vice president, two years as vice president, and the final two years as president.
“I’m honored to be in that position,” Minkler said. “I take my seat on Dec. 12.”