Hartland Township Declines Sheriff Contract

Hartland Township officials announced today that they, along with Tyrone Township, would be declining a proposed two-year extension of the Livingston County Sheriff’s contract.

According to a press release from Hartland Township, both boards voted unanimously against the road patrol contracts for the two communities. The contracts will expire this month.

The decision was based on a month of analysis and discussion of costs and benefits of dedicated patrols, according to the press release.

Following a Livingston County Board of Commissioners meeting on Monday night, the press release states that the Commissioners “rejected concerns and questions raised by the townships” when voting on contract terms. 

Without the police contracts, township officials say the communities will continue to receive road patrol services similar to what is provided throughout the rest of Livingston County.

“Neighboring residents in Brighton, Genoa and Oceola are satisfied with the Sheriff’s road patrol without the need for a contract,” Hartland Township Supervisor Bill Fountain said in the press release. “We look forward to receiving that same quality service.”

Tyrone and Hartland are also rescinding their proposal to extend the current contract rate.

In February, the townships requested that Livingston County hold the current annual contract cost at $309,294 or $154,647 per township, for the next two years giving the townships time to study and determine whether the costs of the contract balance with the benefits.

“The Livingston County Board of Commissioners has some difficult policy decisions to make about the future of road patrol and the role of cost sharing,” said James Wickman, Hartland Township Manager. “By respectfully declining this contract, we believe that they will be in a better position to assess this issue more clearly.”

Wickman estimated that the cost for additional services averaged more than $200 per run for matters such as neighbor disputes.  

“This is a high premium to pay for the types of incidents not receiving response in most of the other townships,” he said in the press release.

The Livingston County Sheriff’s Department provides general road patrol to 13 townships with a total population of 119,141, not including cities or villages that fund their own police departments, according to a document from the Hartland Township.

The combined population for residents of Hartland and Tyrone townships is 24,683 and provides 21 percent of the total county road patrol coverage area.