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Gaylord council schedules May 27 workshop to review proposed three-city police consolidation
Summary
Council members asked staff for more budget and service-level details before committing to a proposed combined police department with Winthrop and Gibbon and set a special meeting for 6 p.m. on May 27 to review a recorded April 20 presentation and draft joint powers materials.
Mayor Don Kratzky called a special meeting to discuss a proposed consolidated police department after council members raised concerns about service levels and governance under a joint powers agreement.
Councilmembers repeatedly asked for more concrete budget figures and clarity about who would control day‑to‑day operations if Gaylord joined a tri‑city police department with Winthrop and Gibbon. A staff member said city administrators and the three police chiefs are preparing a joint powers agreement and projected budgets; the staff recommended a workshop so the chiefs could answer detailed questions.
"We have all of our equipment right now that the city owns, and you go to a joint powers that's shared," one council member said, warning that a joint agency could slow or limit local control. Another council member said he worried residents would be unhappy if local dedicated coverage—currently described in the meeting as 22 hours per day of local presence—was reduced under a consolidation.
Staff said the April 20 presentation to the three cities had been recorded and that the recording could be made available to council members who missed that meeting. Concerns raised included the projected wage levels for sergeants under the consolidation, possible union contract impacts, the structure of governance under a joint powers board and whether initial savings could grow as wages and benefits change.
Councilmember comments mixed caution and openness. One member said the project might save money under high‑end budgeting assumptions used in the presentation; another urged a cautious approach: "Let's get a little bit more information before we decide," they said.
The council unanimously moved to schedule a special meeting for 6 p.m. on May 27 to continue the discussion, hear the chiefs and review draft joint powers documents and budget scenarios. Staff was directed to provide the April 20 recording and to continue drafting the joint powers agreement and projected budgets for council review.
The special meeting will be devoted to questions and answers with the chiefs and staff; council members said they will use that session to test whether a consolidated model can match current service levels and be budget‑neutral or better for the community.
