By Shereen Siewert | Wausau Pilot & Review
Everest Metro and Rothschild Police will merge their department into a single agency if municipal leaders approve a proposal this week that paves the way for a May 1 start date.
Merger plans were announced in January, after EMPD Chief Clay Schulz announced his retirement. The most recent proposal to merge departments failed more than a decade ago and drew strong opposition from some residents. This time, the idea of a merged south metro department is seeing little resistance and appears on track for approval.
Under the terms of the agreement being considered this week, the two departments will merge to become the Mountain Bay Metropolitan Police Department, or MBMPD, with a roughly 40-officer force to serve the Village and Town of Weston, Rothschild and Schofield.
In a joint statement, Rothschild and Weston administrators praised the move.
“At this time, both village boards and the leaders have taken a proactive approach in finding an optimistic and positive way to policing both communities, that would help to showcase the strong attributes that both entities bring to the table,” the statement read. “As noted several weeks prior, both villages continue to share a tremendous amount of optimism and positive attitudes regarding this collaborative approach.”
The current facility in Rothschild will be the headquarters of the new department, though officials say Everest Metro station could be used as a satellite. A shared Metropolitan Police Commission will govern the joint department, with three members appointed by the village of Rothschild and four appointed by the village of Weston. Commissioners will be appointed to serve one-, two- and three-year terms.
The Commission, when appointed, will choose a chief for the shared department. Chief Jeremy Hunt heads the Rothschild Police Department at this time, while Clay Schulz departed Everest Metro in February.
Rothschild and Weston will also be asked to establish an oversight board for management authority to the MBMPD. The board will establish an operating budget, conduct labor negotiations, negotiate and approve mutual aid agreements and perform several other oversight responsibilities.
The budget implications are unclear at this time. But under the terms of the agreement, the initial shared police budget will be the combined budgets of the 2024 EMPD and RPD budgets, including any current unassigned fund balances. Beginning next year, Rothschild will pay 35% of the annual MBMPD budget with the village of Weston picking up 65% of the tab.
A joint municipal court system is also being adopted as part of the process.
Former EMPD Chief Dan Vergin was the consultant for the merger, with a legal review by attorney Nicholas Flanagan.
Schofield and Rothschild already share fire services, though a separate department serves Weston and Rib Mountain.
Briefly, Wausau and Everest Metro in 2008 also explored the possibility of merging departments. Vergin in 2008 said the move was more about providing better services and not a way to reduce costs or eliminate positions. In 2008, former Wausau Police Chief Bill Brandimore said merged departments can operate more efficiently because they require less administrative time and resources compared with two separate departments. That plan never got off the ground.
Weston will vote on the matter Monday, with Rothschild set to vote next week. If approved, the Commission and Oversight Board will begin meeting in early April.
