Ross Valley Councils Are in Agreement -- A Good Start

On Tuesday night, July 9, the San Anselmo Town Council took what might eventually be seen as the critical beginning of something good. The council, by a 5-0 vote, authorized the signing of a

The agreement is the outgrowth of work done over the past 18 months by the San Anselmo Police Department and the Twin Cities Police Authority. What made the agreement the logical next step for both departments is that Twin Cities has been working in the San Anselmo Police dispatch center since the construction of the new Twin Cities Police headquarters building in Larkspur began. Both departments found that by working more closely together services were actually improved and, if pursued further, major savings could result for all parties.

The San Anselmo Council authorized the Police Chief to conduct negotiations with Twin Cities. The council wisely imposed no restrictions on the discussions, as occured in the twice failed negotiations a few years ago with the Fairfax Town Council, which only resulted in agreements to shelve the idea of working more closely together. 

The agreement signed is predicted to save San Anselmo up to $240,000 a year. It maintains business counter presence during the regular workweek, provides direct voice and picture contact all other times, increases dectective staffing capability, makes better use of police volunteers, along with some other administrative procedures.

According to the two Police Chiefs one of the major ingredients of successful discussions was that the staff from both departments were directly involved in the discussions, which paralleled the co-location of the the dispatch centers. The obvious take-a-way from this process is that when staff is involved, the process goes much easier because there is a built-in investment and a direct knowledge base from which to develop a plan that makes sense and works for all involved.

Aside from the direct benefits in both services and cost, the idea of shared services forms a solid foundation for a much broader series of discussions between the towns and cities in the Ross Valley. Results of successful discussions could eventually make the difference in going to the voters time after time to fund doing business the way it has been done for the past 100 years.

Areas that could be subject for shared services discussions could be: Parks and Recreation, Human Resources, common forms and policies, equipment purchasing and operation, and even public venues. When closely looked at there is much to be gained from beginning such discussions in view of the expensive duplication of the same services that currently are taking place throughout the Ross Valley.

Congratulations go out to all those involved in the discussions, which most likely have started some more serious thinking now and in future years.

(In a later blog, I will discuss some of the concerns that might crop up as a result of what has taken place already in the Ross Valley.)