Police Committee Minutes 5-3-2021

Publish date: May 4, 2021

Police Committee 5-3-2021

RUTLAND TOWN SELECT BOARD

POLICE COMMITTEE MEETING

MONDAY MAY 3rd, 2021

The Police Committee of the Rutland Town Select Board met at 4:30 PM on Monday May 3rd at the Rutland Town Municipal Town Hall. Present was Board Chair Mary Ashcroft, Board Member Sharon Russell, Town Police Chief Ed Dumas, Town Deputy Police Chief Ted Washburn, and Town Administrative Assistant Bill Sweet. There was a conference call line with a publicly accessible and warned phone number in use.

  • The committee discussed the status of the issues with the Holiday Inn.
    1. There were 3 overdose calls last week, with one being a fatality.
    2. Mr. Sachdev did meet with Ms. Russell as he said he would but has not met with anyone else from the Town. He did reach out to Chief Dumas but has not had a conversation with him.
    3. There are some estimates that put the income of the Quality Inn at more than $1.4 million since the beginning of the pandemic voucher program.
    4. During the meeting with the Select Board, Mr. Sachdev stated he had weekly inspection logs for the rooms. These have not been shared with the town and copies of these will be requested.
    5. Discussed seeking reimbursement from the state for the large volume of calls at the Holiday Inn. A list of responses and a rate was discussed. An invoice will be sent for 66 calls between February, March, and April at a rate of $45 per hour for a total of $2970. A copy of it will be sent to various state officials.
    6. A follow up meeting with affected business owners is planned for Friday May 7th.
    7. Private security has been in place now for over a week and the impact on the reduction of calls for service by the police has been noticeable.
    8. Mr. Sachdev told Ms. Russell during their meeting he plans to attend the board meetings on a regular basis to keep the board updated on his progress with addressing the issues.
    9. The committee would like the list of recommendation discussed at the meeting with business owners included in the Select Board packet.
    10. Mr. Sachdev had talked about several items, including adding private security at the hotel, adding additional cameras and installing a long fence, he was willing to deliver on to address the problems. This will be compiled and reviewed to ensure progress is being made.
    11. There have been no issues the police were aware of related to the covid-19 vaccination site operating out of the conference space.
  • The K9 program is still moving forward. An exact in-service date is not known at this time.
  • Omya has been paying their back invoices from the patrols. Deputy Chief Washburn will investigate what is left to be paid.
  • There is no update on the 5-year plan.
  • Discussed the future of dispatching service, the Rutland County Sheriff Department has no interest at this point of taking it over. No alternate plans have been discussed.
  • The committee discussed enforcement of fireworks violations.
    1. The VT Supreme court has ruled recently that local municipalities cannot issue fireworks display permits.
    2. Residents will need to apply for a public display permit through the state.
  • Discussed the future of the Police Office.
    1. An alternate facility has been discussed but details, including a location, have not been determined yet.
    2. A joint facility, with the Fire Department, in conjunction with the replacement of the McKinley Avenue fire station has been brought up.
    3. Resources to help develop the concept for this kind of facility need to be sourced. Other towns around have built this kind of concept.
  • There is a dog issue at a residence on West Proctor Road. An investigation has been started. The Health Officer will be involved as needed as well.
  • The committee discussed the ability of officers to bring town patrol vehicles home when they are not on duty.
    1. Currently the Chief and Deputy Chief have vehicles which they bring home.
    2. There was a concern that problems could arise in the future if a practice of taking home cruisers begins and is allowed to continue.
    3. Discussed developing a policy that only allows it at the Chief’s discretion.
    4. If problems arose, the privilege could be rescinded.
    5. No decision or recommendation was made.
  • A new School Resource Officer, Angie Schermerhorn, was sworn in today. She starts at the school on May 4th.
  • The committee discussed what policies and ordinances they should review.
    1. The ones that were related to law enforcement are Vehicles and Traffic, ATVs, public Assembly and Driving While Operating a Handheld Device.
    2. Copies of these ordinances will be sent to the committee members.

 

The meeting adjourned at 5:55 PM

Respectfully submitted, Bill Sweet

Rutland Town News

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