The Lack Of Transparency Part 1 – Police Advisor has been updated to reflect the fact that in addition to Midland, The Town Of Hanover And Municipality Of West Grey Also Issued A Request For Proposal – Study And Analysis Of The Feasibility Of The Amalgamation Of The Hanover And West Grey Police Services.
Michael Mitchell of MPM Consulting was the successful respondent and undertook the project beginning on March 21, 2016.
Ratepayers expect promises of accountability and transparency to be fulfilled. A series of posts will examine the lack of transparency when this council was to examine and compare policing costs.
A committee was established to review all the options and naturally, one would expect such committee members to possess the necessary expertise to advise council.
CAO Miceli initially informed Council the Joint Police Advisory Committee (JPAC) should be formed as a first step to ensure an open and transparent process for the review of policing options. Mayor DiCarlo stated, “we realized we need to get the committee in place and look at all the options.”
CAO Miceli’s recommendation to form a committee was based on the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police (OACP) ‘A Process Guidebook for the Review of Policing Options 2012′ he relied on.
If the committee requested assistance, Ministry Police Advisors were referred to and their role was explained in the Guidebook on page 6:
During any consideration of policing options, the initial responsibility of the advisor is to outline for the Board and Council their options and responsibilities under the Act and the potential implications of each. During a review of Policing Options, the advisor is available upon request to provide information and advice to participants in the process. Their advice is based on the legislation contained in the PSA, its regulations, and Ministry guidelines, as well as best practices that arise from other similar restructuring experiences.
Miceli would not confirm if any Ministry Advisors were involved in the police costing process here in Amherstburg.
Mike Mitchell, MPM Consulting, attended the inaugural July 2016 JPAC meeting wherein policing options were discussed: the OPP, Windsor and LaSalle.
MPM Consulting was to provide its proposal for consulting services through Miceli; Mitchell’s July 2016 Proposal was received at the January 16, 2017 JPAC meeting.
Council received Miceli’s report an the JPAC recommendation and agreed to hire MPM Consulting at its January 23, 2017 meeting.
The Town of Midland issued an RFP FOR THE PROVISION OF THE STUDY AND ANALYSIS OF POLICING SERVICES – MIDLAND POLICE SERVICE AND OPP.
The OPP commenced policing of Midland on February 8, 2018.
Edited: The Town Of Hanover And Municipality Of West Grey Also Issued A Request For Proposal – Study And Analysis Of The Feasibility Of The Amalgamation Of The Hanover And West Grey Police Services.
Michael Mitchell of MPM Consulting was the successful respondent and undertook the project beginning on March 21, 2016.
As mentioned in the post, Meloche Wants Deputy Mayor Seat, Meloche referenced the deal with Windsor Police to take over policing Amherstburg.
According to the RTT article, Meloche said Essex had $3.9 million in policing costs in 2018 compared to Amherstburg’s $5.8 million.
The article continued, “Overall, we thought it’s a good deal for Amherstburg as a whole,” he said, noting there are $14 million in potential savings over the next 20 years.
Here’s my math:
Essex paid $1.9 million less on policing than Amherstburg.
Amherstburg’s $5.8 million minus $700,000.00 potential annual savings for 20 years will cost taxpayers $102 million.
Essex’s $3.9 million will cost taxpayers $78 million in 20 years.
While Amherstburg is expected to save $14 million, Essex taxpayers will spend $24 million less than us over the same time period.
I maintain that because Amherstburg did not obtain an OPP costing, despite carrying two motions to do so, Amherstburg taxpayers missed the opportunity to know if more savings were possible.
Commentary by Linda Saxon
Commentary by Linda Saxon
I inquired if any Police Service Advisors were involved in the police costing process because Advisors are readily available: see page 3 of the OACP (Ontario Association Chiefs of Police), A Process Guidebook for the Review of Policing Options 2012, the guide referred to by CAO Miceli:
“During any consideration of policing options, the initial responsibility of the advisor is to outline for the Board and Council their options and responsibilities under the Act and the potential implications of each. During a review of Policing Options, the advisor is available upon request to provide information and advice to participants in the process. Their advice is based on the legislation contained in the PSA, its regulations, and Ministry guidelines, as well as best practices that arise from other similar restructuring experiences.”
Requesting Ministry Advisors might have been productive and might have saved ratepayers from paying for a private firm like MPM Consulting.
the burg watch 