Will the Quincy Police Department be disbanded?
QUINCY — Quincy Police Chief Mike Kolassa resigned Tuesday, effective immediately, Village Manager Brittany Butler told the council Tuesday night.
The village council scheduled a hearing on April 16 for public input on disbanding the village police department, a discussion that began on March 5 at a village council workshop.
Village president Mike Hagaman said the council had made no decision. "The police department is in the (2024) budget. We want input from the people."
Butler said keeping police is a problem for the village. "Quincy is a stepping stone. We've produced a lot of great officers that have gone to different towns and communities."
A survey of starting police salaries conducted by Union City Village Manager and Police Chief Chris Mathis last month showed only Colon was lower than the $19 an hour paid by Quincy.
The Branch County Sheriff starts deputies at $24.09 an hour, with Coldwater at $26.41.
Union City raised its starting police pay to $23 an hour, effective April 1.
Officer Kasey Capella, who graduated from the police academy in September, remains the only Quincy officer. She will continue to work while the village council considers the department's future.
Officer Cameron Thompson, who graduated with Capella, already left Quincy to become a Branch County deputy.
Butler told two candidates waiting to attend police academy to qualify to become Quincy Police Officers not to proceed.
Both men had not started the program but were scheduled for physicals last Friday.
Butler said the council must be fiscally responsible. The police budget for the April 1, 2024, fiscal year is $359,350. The amount is just under a quarter of the proposed 2024 general fund budget of $1.5 million.
Hagaman said if the council decides to continue the police department, "We will rebuild it. We've done it before. We can do it again" after losing officers.
With only a chief and three officers authorized, "It's a concern because we don't have 24/7 coverage," the village manager said.
A local village department provides "A better working relationship with the residents because they feel like they have somebody local. Our officers know the local people," Butler said.
Quincy Township contracted for police services with the village until April 2023, when it ended a nine-year agreement.
At the time, Quincy Township Supervisor Gene Brand said the $24,000-a-year agreement was too much for the 2023 township budget.
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Township officials raised concerns that Quincy police didn't provide enough township coverage, but statistics showed that 44% of the previous three years' calls were in the township.
-- Contact Don Reid: dReid@Gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Coldwater Daily Reporter: Village sets April 16 hearing on disbanding Quincy Police
