City's Dispatch Consolidation Decision Dependent Upon Grant Application Results

Among all of the talk about , , another consolidation is still being considered. 

The is still planning to seek , city manager Pete Dame said Monday, following the council meeting. The study related to consolidating public safety dpeartments is separate, he said.

Three offers to the City by , and have been under consideration for months and each remains under consideration, Dame said. In November, Dame visited the other three dispatch centers to evaluate each and see how each might be beneficial to the City. 

Ultimately, the decision of which offer to accept is dependent upon a grant application that all five of the Pointes submitted seeking money to pay for an all-Pointes dispatch center and lockup, Dame said. If the grant is awarded, creating a central dispatch/lockup would be ideal and if the Pointes do not receive the grant, then Dame is likely going to select the offer best-suited to the City's needs, he said. 

The , which found that while a central dispatch/lockup would be the most ideal for all for all of the municipalities, it was not financially feasible at the time. The report went on to recommend smaller consolidation within the Pointes while maintaing a longterm, ultimate goal of creating an all-Pointes dispatch/lockup center.

Just a few months ago, in which the 911 calls from Shores residents are now answered in the Farms dispatch center. The deal saves operating costs for the Shores and enabled the Farms to hire on the two dispatchers from the Shores who stuck around until the transition was complete.

Officials had some bugs to work out immediatley after making the switch, none of which could have been predicted until the actual change happened. The change has otherwise gone smoothly, according to to city administrators from both the Farms and the Shores. 

The grant Dame said the cities applied for is under the state's new revenue sharing model--Economic Vitality Incentive Program, or EVIP--in which communities must show they are attempting to work with neighboring communities in offering services with a shared cost, ultimately reducing the expenditures of both communities.

It is hard to predict what the state may do with the application despite it involving five communities trying to work together, Dame said, noting the recent unfavorable demeanor of the state toward the Grosse Pointes.

He remains hopeful, however, saying that a central dispatch and lockup center is the option that makes the most sense for all of the Grosse Pointes. The pot of money is dwindling, however, and Dame is keeping an eye on it.

Regardless of the outcome of the grant, Dame said consolidation at a minimum of the City's dispatch center is likely to happen in 2012.