By David Fleet
dfleet@mihomepaper.com
Atlas Twp.— Look for additional police coverage in the township soon.
On Monday night the Atlas Township Board of Trustees voted 4-0 for a new one year contract renewal for enforcement services between the Genesee County Sheriff’s Office, Atlas Township and Goodrich Schools. Township Clerk Katie Vick was absent. The terms of the new contract include five deputies rather than four, along with funding for a detective-sergeant, split between Fenton and the township.
The new cost for coverage is $719,104 for Oct. 1, 2024 to Sept. 30, 2025. The previous contract expired Sept. 30, 2024. In comparison, from Oct. 1, 2023 to Sept. 30, 2024 the cost was $598,727, an increase of $120,377. The Goodrich School Resource Officer costs are $149,618 with $104,732 (70%) funded by the school and $44,885 (30%) for the township.
Earlier this month Township Supervisor Jim Busch along with the Genesee County Sheriff, undersheriff and other officials gathered to discuss the renewal.
“We were able to work out adding an additional patrol officer to our contract,” said Busch. “We go up to five (from four) patrol officers and keep everything else the same.”
Busch said the shorter, one year contract with the township is due to the Genesee County Sheriff deputies contract set to expire at the end of 2024.
“We don’t know where that negotiation is going to take us,” he said. “As a result we did not want to do a three or five year contract with the possibility of an amendment. After the (deputy) contract is done next year we’ll sit down and try to lock in a three or five year deal.”
Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson continues to appreciate the working relationship with Atlas Township.
“Atlas Township has received a great contract for almost three decades,” said Swanson. “Even though we don’t have 24/7 coverage, it’s been covered by agents of the Genesee County Sheriff’s Office. The new deputy is going to close the gap to make it 24/7.”
“What you are going to see when you add personnel is when there are more cars on the road and a greater police presence,” he said. “We have two vehicles assigned to Atlas Township, and for the community it is going to look like there are deputies everywhere. You’ll see the impact and focus on traffic enforcement but we are not going to use it as a punitive damage. It’s about slowing people down, stopping at stop signs, curbing drunk driving and driving under the influence. You can count on us doing more for the community.”
“The Goodrich Student Resource Officer (SRO) is one of the busiest of all the 18 county school districts we assist with,” said Swanson. “There are 15 SRO assigned to school districts. The Goodrich SRO is vital to keeping the school and community safe. The partnership between the school and township is priceless.”
The Goodrich School District first acquired an SRO in 2019. The officer will be part of a leadership team and provide an active role within the community. Such an assignment could save a life, working top to bottom with not only students but also the parents, administrators and teachers. The officer is in the school district during class hours during the 180 days of session. When not in the district, the SRO will be in the township joining the current deputies for extra help
The township established a contract with the Genesee County Sheriff’s Department about 30 years ago, funded then by 1 mill from area property owners. The law enforcement is now funded by a 2.1 millage OK’d in May 2017, by township voters for police protection and 1 mill for the fire department.
The five-year millage will generate an estimated $900,000 for the police services and about $450,000 for the fire department.