Homer Glen will survey residents this spring to see if they want a police department or if they are satisfied with police services provided by the Will County Sheriff’s Department.
It would cost about $900,000 for Homer Glen to start a police department and about $2.7 million a year to operate it, according to a study by the new village’s public safety task force.
The Sheriff’s Department has a contract with the village to provide police service for two more years for about $2.4 million a year.
“Sometimes, when you talk to residents, you get the perception that they want more officers, but would they be willing to support that financially?” asked Mary Niemiec, who chairs the task force.
The survey will ask residents how they feel about the current police service, whether they want Homer Glen to have its own force and whether they want increased services. The village also plans to hold focus groups for residents.
The study showed it would be feasible–from a budget standpoint–for the village to have its own police department, said Trustee Laurel Ward.
Costs associated with starting a police force include recruitment and training, equipment and administrative expenses.
But a village police department, Niemiec said, is a “completely dedicated force. It can customize services. It brings flexibility and can adapt to ongoing needs.”
Initially, some residents had expressed concerns over the lack of police visibility and over the coverage provided by the Sheriff’s Department. Ward said many of those concerns have been worked out in recent months.
“It was a trial-and-error period for both of us,” she said.
Mayor Russ Petrizzo said village officials now meet once a month with the Sheriff’s Department to discuss police service and public safety issues.
“We’re in constant touch,” he said.
The Sheriff’s Department supplies a force of 16 officers and four supervisors. According to the study, a village police department would have 18 officers, a command staff and a chief.
Ward, Petrizzo and Niemiec agreed that the largest obstacle to starting a police department would be the $900,000 in start-up costs.
But Ward said state and federal grants may be available to help defray the costs.
“There are ways to achieve this without a referendum or added tax,” she said.
The village learned this week that it will receive $105,000 in state grants to pay for three patrol cars. The cars, which should be on the streets in the fall, may help the village reduce the cost of its contract with Will County, Niemiec said.
If the village continues to use county services, Niemiec said, she also would like to see patrol cars emblazoned with both the village’s and the Sheriff’s Department’s names.
“It would give us a sense of identity [as a village]–a sense of ownership,” she said.
Ward said the village, formed last year, has not discussed with county officials whether they want to continue the contract on a long-term basis.
Niemiec said leadership changes at the Sheriff’s Department also could affect its relationship with the village.
Will County Sheriff Brendan Ward is retiring this year.
The survey will be contained in a newsletter to be mailed to residents in April.
