KIMBERLY, Wis. (WFRV) – A tough decision looms for the village of Kimberly officials.
For 30 years, the village has contracted with the Fox Valley Metro Police Department for its law enforcement services. Some village officials want to switch over to the Outagamie County sheriff’s department, saying it will save the county money without sacrificing the quality of service in the village.
On Monday afternoon, the village held two listening sessions to discuss this potential change with the community. Each one had over 100 attendees.
“I was encouraged by not an open chair, that was the point, and we wanted to have an opportunity to share the information,” said village of Kimberly administrator Danielle Block.
Representatives from both the sheriff’s department and Fox Valley Metro had an opportunity to discuss the services they can offer the Kimberly community.
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Village officials say a switch to Outagamie County for law enforcement services would save the village $279,313 annually. There would be 11 deputies assigned to the village of Kimberly, which comes out to about 1.4 deputies per 1,000 residents (which is the same ratio under the current contract with Fox Valley Metro).
With the sheriff’s department taking over, there would still be 24/7 coverage, investigative services capabilities, and school resource officers. Sheriff department officials say the quality of service wouldn’t change.
“What I’ve seen in Combined Locks and I’ve spoken to people in Greenville and the town of Buchanan (they use Outagamie County for law enforcement services), every one of them had nothing but praise,” said Kimberly resident Matt Tennessen. “Good things because they feel like they’re getting better police services.”
Blue yard signs have emerged throughout the Kimberly community in support of the Fox Valley Metro police department. Kimberly has used the department for its police services for 30 years.
“All this experience here, you can try to put a cost on it, but that’s really up to you,” said Fox Valley Metro police chief Daniel Meister. “That’s one of the things I want to hone in on, is they know you and you know them.”
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“What I like about Fox Valley Metro and the community is the people being able to know their experiences and their stories,” said Fox Valley Metro police department officer Laura Oster.
Kimberly Village President Chuck Kuen told Local 5 News that he expects the village board to make a decision on this within the next month. He says sending it to a referendum is an option, but that right now he’s focused on absorbing feedback from community members.
Both the sheriff’s department and Fox Valley Metro officials said this isn’t an us against them type of thing and that they have a great working relationship.
“We are here to speak about ourselves, what we can provide, not at any point will you hear us say anything negative about them (Fox Valley Metro) because we have nothing negative to say about them,” Outagamie County Sheriff Clint Kriewaldt said. “They’ve been great partners, and no matter how this ends up, that partnership will remain the same.”
If the village of Kimberly chooses to switch to Outagamie County for law enforcement services, there’s a three-year transition period before that switch could officially be made.
