At their regular board meeting on Monday, April 9, 2007, the Bloomfield Township Board of Trustees voted unanimously to study the potential benefit of consolidating the Township Police and Fire Departments with those of the City of Birmingham. In Michigan’s climate of increasing financial pressures on local governments, consolidation is seen as potentially being a significant way of reducing costs while maintaining – and possibly even enhancing – services.
"We want to control costs without compromising critical services," said Township Supervisor Dave Payne. "Consolidation of some services may be one way to achieve efficiencies in operations while stabilizing costs and keeping service levels high."
Supervisor Payne and Birmingham’s City Manager Tom Markus, have jointly developed a preliminary concept proposal and have recognized the merit of studying it further. They have asked their police and fire chiefs to explore ways it could be successfully implemented. The resolution passed by the Bloomfield Township Board of Trustees directs the administrative staffs of both communities to prepare an agreement to study and recommend a course of action to their respective governing bodies.
Payne and Markus have noted that Bloomfield Township and the City of Birmingham are natural partners in such an endeavor. The two communities are both in sound financial condition and share a common boundary and similar demographics. There is a long established history of working well together over the years. Many of the Township’s neighborhoods are served by Birmingham Public Schools. The police and fire departments are similar in their organizational management and participate in the same mutual aid organization. Both municipalities fall under the jurisdiction of the 48th District Court.
Consolidation Proposal - April 9, 2007 Consolidation Study Application - May 14, 2007 Consolidation Study - February 9, 2009
