Newton County Supervisors are re-examining a proposed contract to provide 911 dispatching to the Town of Hickory after Hickory Police Chief Mark Spence told the board last Tuesday the cost would most likely shut down his office.
“The Town of Hickory Police Department is not a department on the rise,” he said.
Over the 21 years he has served on the Hickory Police force, Spence said he has seen the department go from several full-time and part-time officers to just part-time officers providing only eight hours of patrolling per day. The officers are dedicated to their community, he said, remaining on call at all hours, however the town’s tax revenue has declined to where aldermen simply cannot afford to keep a full-time presence.
“We really are struggling just to do what we do for the town,” he said.
Under the proposed dispatching contract, which would cost the town $6,360 per year, Spence said he didn’t think the town would be able to find the money to keep the police department.
“We’re really struggling just to keep above water,” he said. “I’m just asking for you all to help us out.”
E911 Director Bryan Taylor, who is coordinating the dispatching consolidation, said he spoke with Spence and agreed the fee should be re-evaluated. The $6,360 per year fee, he said, was based on $12 per person per year, which is the same rate as contracts presented to Newton, Union and Decatur. However, that rate is based on 24-hour dispatching. As HPD is only patrolling eight hours per day, he said, the rate should be changed to reflect that.
“It probably needs to be dropped down to one third,” Taylor told the board. “I didn’t realize they only work eight hours.”
Additionally, Supervisor Joe Alexander said he had met with Hickory Mayor J.C. Walker about the issue and may have another possible solution.
“He talked to me about some of the taxes they’re not collecting,” he said. “We may be able to find this money.”
Spence said he didn’t want the county to give preferential treatment to Hickory but appreciated any help they could give his small police force. Dispatching is a crucial service, he said, but the Hickory Police Department also does good work in the community.
“We’ve got some good folks down in Hickory, and we’ve got some that might be a little bit better because we’re there,” he said.
Supervisor Charles Moulds said he could appreciate the situation the Town of Hickory was in. While the county has to pay for its dispatching equipment somehow, he said that didn’t mean the board couldn’t work with Hickory to find a solution to both problems.
“Everybody is going to have to pitch in, but we want to be reasonable,” he said. “If we need to go back and look at this, we can. We’re not trying to cripple anybody.”
Spence said all he wanted from the board was for them to consider the situation from his side. With several proposed solutions, Spence said he felt supervisors had heard him and promised to do what he could to find a working compromise for both parties.
