February 09, 2006

Favors consultant's advice on ending contract with sheriff 

MARICOPA - Taking a momentous step in response to Maricopa's population explosion, the city has decided to form its own police department to protect residents. Last fall, the city hired consulting firm Carroll Buracker & Associates to determine the feasibility and timing of Maricopa creating a police department.

Since incorporation in 2003, Maricopa has contracted with the Pinal County Sheriff's Office for law enforcement services. According to Buracker, who shared the results of his study at Tuesday's City Council meeting, the time has come for Maricopa to move on in terms of law enforcement.

Based on Maricopa's tremendous population growth since incorporation, projected population growth over the next 20 years, as well as Buracker's observations of current services and input from city officials, he suggested the city has no choice.

During the course of his study, Buracker conducted interviews with elected city officials and employees as well as Pinal County sheriff's deputies, residents and business owners relative to perceptions of safety and law enforcement services in the community. He noted that while these perceptions were not necessarily fact, they did not paint a positive picture of the Sheriff's Office's performance.

"Some say that some of the work has been shoddy, that we need performance objectives and local control, that we need our own police department," Buracker said. "We've heard that juvenile cases have not been handled properly and concerns that most deputies do not live in the city."

Other comments Buracker listed included residents saying they no longer call for police assistance because they don't get responsive service. There were also concerns about the city acquiring new academy graduates instead of experienced deputies. Buracker shared statistics about crime rates and deputy response times that did not shed a positive light on the department and said the political aspects of the Sheriff's Office could be a detriment.

"With the current political setting, you may not always have consistency as the sheriff has to run for office every few years," Buracker said. "With local government, you have a better chance of assuring consistency."

Pinal County Sheriff Chris Vasquez shared concerns about the study in an interview with the Monitor following the meeting.

"When you hire a consultant, they are basically paid to learn what their client wants and then deliver the information the client wants to hear so they can make the decision they want to make," Vasquez said. "He put a negative twist on the information, and my concern is that it is not giving a true and accurate picture of what the Sheriff's Office has done in the community. He is doing an injustice to the good deputies working in Maricopa. They are working hard and don't deserve the negative connotation this report has. It doesn't tell the whole story."

Vasquez said several factors play into Maricopa's crime rate, including being in an area heavy with drug trafficking and having a highly transient population. He also said many of the statistics included a time period when only one deputy was assigned to cover the Maricopa beat, per the city's contract, which could have had a negative impact on response times.

Buracker said moving away from the Sheriff's Office to localized control would allow Maricopa to assure teamwork among city agencies and services, develop a community policing model, assure accountability to stakeholders and consistency in policing services. The need for a local department is further intensified by Maricopa's western location in Pinal County and the current lack of full control over who manages and provides police services locally.

In addition, Buracker believes that the cost per unit for contract services would be very similar to the per unit costs for a local police department.

The estimated first-year cost for a Maricopa Police Department to serve approximately 25,000 residents with 44 employees is $3.7 million. The city is currently paying Pinal County nearly $2 million annually for less then half that many full-time employees. However, the current contract does entitle the city of Maricopa to all of the special services provided by the Sheriff's Office, such as the SWAT team, search and rescue and narcotics task force, at no additional cost.

In order to fund the department, Buracker noted the city will need a revenue stream. Maricopa is proposing a property tax initiative on the May ballot which, if passed, would provide the necessary funding. A property tax currently exists in 53 of 88 Arizona cities, as well as Pinal County.

"A substantial number of future residents relocating into Maricopa will have experiences with paying local property taxes on their current homes in other municipalities, especially if they move to Maricopa from other states," Buracker added. "Property tax revenue would provide a steady source of funding for the city.... Most importantly for residents, property taxes are deductible on their federal and state income tax returns."

Starting from scratch, the city will have numerous obstacles to overcome in developing a department. Plans for facilities will be particularly challenging, as the city will not have a new government center or City Hall complete for at least another year.  Officials may have to look toward leasing space to house the department.

"Other questions will relate to co-locating the police and courts in the same facility, space for holding cells, and whether to co-locate police and fire in a joint facility," Buracker said. "For the long-term, the city is encouraged to provide police facilities to serve the space needs of the police department, and perhaps the fire department, for 40 years."

Another major challenge for the city will be staffing of the police department, including recruitment, selection and training of police personnel. The study encourages the city to recruit residents of Maricopa to file applications for police officer positions. Buracker said the city should start with certified and experienced law enforcement officers and supervisors, known as laterals, instead of putting recruits through a police academy.

"This approach will reduce the initial training academy costs," Buracker said. "And incentives should be explored to attract quality applicants."

Buracker said despite the numerous challenges the city will face in building a brand-new police department, Maricopa should move quickly to implement the program. The timeline in the plan provides approximately 18 months to develop and staff a Maricopa Police Department.

"However, if the police chief is not required to develop all the infrastructure, and if facility and fleet issues are resolved quickly, the city is encouraged to accelerate the timetable for a police department," Buracker said.

One of the first, and most important, steps outlined in the plan, which was unanimously approved by the council, is the recruitment and selection of a police chief. The city is expected to discuss the recruitment process at the Feb. 21 council meeting. The study suggests a chief should be in place by mid-summer and that the city should work closely with the Sheriff's Office to ensure a smooth transition.

Despite his reservations about the study, Vasquez said the Sheriff's Office is ready to help.

"I absolutely support their decision. I never had any illusion, nor did the former sheriff, thinking this was going to be long term. We knew at the rate the city was growing that they would need to wean themselves off of the Sheriff's Office and have their own department," Vasquez said. "If I lived in Maricopa I would want that.... Our office has every intention of working with the City Council and staff to have smooth transition; to help them get the best police department they can have."

©Casa Grande Valley Newspapers Inc. 2006