Jim Benedict (left) and Barry Entous (right), members of the Finance Committee Sheriff's Sub-Committee, field questions about the feasibility of having an independent police department for the City of Del Mar
Jim Benedict and Barry Entous, members of the City of Del Mar Finance Committee Sheriff Sub-Committee, joined our September 28, 2017 meeting to discuss issues surrounding community law enforcement. Currently, the City of Del Mar contracts with the San Diego Sherriff’s Department and for fiscal year 2015/2016, the cost was $2 million. There are several concerns regarding the existing service, including: i) a lack of city control over services provided; ii) limited traffic enforcement; iii) long response times for “Priority 4 Calls” that involve vandalism, prowlers and excessive noise, which represent the majority of calls in the City of Del Mar; iv) lack of additional support during peak summer months; and v) contract fees that rise on average 2.5% annually. Due to these issues, the Sherriff Sub-Committee was formed in 2013 to explore the costs and feasibility of securing dedicated community law enforcement.
The committee estimated that the costs for a dedicated police department would be $2,260,500, with the bulk of that figure (~$2,000,000) going to pay 15 full-time and 4 part-time employees and the remainder to cover supplies and facility rental. There would also be associated start-up costs that are estimated to be around $1,200,000 that would be used to purchase equipment and vehicles as well as to recruit and train new officers. Jim and Barry noted that the Sub-Committee is continuing to explore the costs and issues associated with an independent police department and a detailed report of the Committee’s findings, including an analysis of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, was made publicly available on June 19, 2017.