Town of Montgomery authorizes shared services study

Posted 12/30/20

The Montgomery Town Board approved a shared services study contract with Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress at their meeting on Dec. 17. This will cost the town board an amount not to exceed $20,000. …

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Town of Montgomery authorizes shared services study

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The Montgomery Town Board approved a shared services study contract with Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress at their meeting on Dec. 17. This will cost the town board an amount not to exceed $20,000.

“We look forward to hopefully getting a report that will save the Town of Montgomery lots and lots of money on potential shared services through the Town of Montgomery and the village police departments,” said Montgomery Town Supervisor Brian Maher.

Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress President and CEO Jonathan Drapkin gave a presentation to the Montgomery Town Board at their meeting on Dec. 3, detailing what the shared services study contract would entail. The main goals of the study are to look at creating shared services and developing ways to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the police departments within the town.

Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress is a not-for-profit policy, planning, advocacy and research organization. Their mission is to promote regional, balanced and sustainable solutions that enhance the growth and vitality of the Hudson Valley. They have done shared services study contracts for towns with multiple police departments in Rockland, Ulster and Dutchess counties. The organization hopes to complete the study in six months.

“COVID does make this a little interesting doing research but we’ve been doing it now since March,” Drapkin said at the town board meeting on Dec. 3. “We’re getting really good at it. There is actually efficiency right now that I didn’t have to travel to Montgomery to be at this meeting. When I’m done, I’m done.”

Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress will establish an advisory group to obtain information regarding the police departments from each respective agency.
“It’s a pretty straight forward kind of research project,” Drapkin said. “The only complication is that you do have four departments and it just means there’s more of it. But other than that, they’re not immense departments.”

Maher added that there are also state programs which could reap benefits for the town and its villages. He noted that the town is not looking to consolidate its four police departments into one agency. “It doesn’t look like there is gonna be an appetite for creating one department, so I want to squash that right away so that it doesn’t hurt our end game in potentially saving some money and doing some shared services,” Maher said. “This is much more about shared services. This is about ‘what can we do. What duplications are taking place with four departments, the state troopers, the county and other resources available.’ And that’s what Jonathan and his team are going to do. They’re going to do a deep dive.”