Date:
April 8, 2003
Citizens of Elyria,
In the May elections, you, the
citizens of Elyria, will be asked to vote on Issue 19, the renewal of a 1/2%
income tax. At this time, I would like
to express my personal encouragement that you vote "Yes" on this
issue.
Funds from the 1/2% income tax are
used to support the City's General Fund, which is used to cover the City's
operational costs. A majority of the
Elyria Police Department's budget is also supported by this same General
Fund. If Issue 19 should fail to be
approved by you, the citizens of Elyria, the Elyria Police Department's budget
will have to be reduced by approximately 2.3 million dollars. This is equivalent to about 25% of the
department's total personnel costs. As
with any service oriented operation, the loss of personnel will adversely
effect the level of service that the public receives.
The police department is already working below our authorized
strength of 100 officers. Elyria Police
Department is handling close to 39,000 calls for service with only 90
officers. The 2003 budget has allocated
money to hire 4 officers which will bring our levels up to 94. The police department needs to hire 6 more
officers to bring the police force up to full force. Due to the present budget cuts the police department has been
operating at a reduced level. If the 1/2 % income tax is not passed, this would
force the police department to work at dangerously low levels.
The Elyria Police Department has
continued to make progress in the level of service that it provides to the
public. In 2002, the department
responded to 39,001 calls for service, an increase of 2.1% over 2001. Some of those calls were due to the new
"Terrorist Alert" and Homeland Security needs. The impact of losing
more officers could put our citizens in jeopardy. In my opinion, this would not be a good time
to reduce our police force. We are
facing days with many threats and unknown problems due to terrorists in the
world.
Due to the threats that have been
issued to the citizens of United States and Lorain County's citizens through
terrorist's organizations, the Elyria Police Department has assigned four
officers to work with the newly developed Lorain County Terrorists Task Force,
which is staffed with officers from all police departments in Lorain
County. The main purpose of the task
force is to identify and investigate any terrorist threats in Elyria and Lorain
County.
In order to provide a better working relationship with the
public, the Elyria Police Department has involved itself in the community
policing philosophy. The goal has been
to make the officers on patrol more accessible to the public. As a result, a number of programs have been
started, programs whose future success relies heavily on the continued support
of the 1/2% income tax.
One of the significant programs
that has been instituted under the community policing guidelines is the bicycle
patrols. The bicycle patrols
have worked in all sections of the
City and have been well received by the citizens. In the future, I would like to see the bike program
expanded. However, without the full
staffing of the department that the 1/2% income tax allows, even the
continuation of the existing programs will be in jeopardy.
There are very few school-aged
children in Elyria who do not know Officer Bob from their involvement in the
DARE Program during the school year or from Safety Town during the summer
months. Both of these programs are
serving the youth of our community well.
Here again, these programs are man-power intensive and a 25% reduction
in the work force would place these program on hold.
The most important operation
within the Elyria Police Department, and the one that deals most directly with
the public, is the Patrol Division. It
is the Patrol Division that provides the initial officers to all called for
services within the City. If you call
for help from the police department, these are the men and women who come to
your door. It is here that the greatest
impact would be felt if Issue 19 fails at the polls. Even with the reduction of manpower in specialized units, a 25%
reduction in total manpower would mean a reduction in the number of officers
available to respond to the public's needs.
You, the citizens of Elyria, have
actively supported the City and the Elyria Police Department by voting for and
approving the income taxes that are currently in place. Issue 19 is not a new income tax, rather it
is a renewal of an existing 1/2% income tax.
The strong partnership that has been built between you and your city
government, supported in part by this income tax, must continue in order for
Elyria to become an even better place to live and raise our families. Please renew your vow of confidence and
support for this partnership by voting "Yes" on Issue 19 this May.
Sincerely,
Michael Medders
Chief of Police