Lake Orion riparian John Strand wonders if next year’s Fourth of July fireworks are in jeopardy, now that the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office has announced a plan to pull its boats from area lakes.
Some of his neighbors, Strand said, worry the Sheriff’s better-than-nothing plan for jump boats’which will respond to emergency situations on county lakes’will essentially serve as EMS units.
‘They’ll be recovering a body, in the worst case scenario,? he said. ‘Either way, they’re responding after the fact.?
Currently, the department has 25 boats, manned by 60 part-time deputies, out on the larger lakes during the summer months.
But like many others charged with overseeing a budget in the current economic climate, the sheriff is forced to slice programs. It was necessary, said OCSO administrators, to slice $13. 3 million from next year’s budget.
‘The road patrol will be picking up what we can’t do,? said Sgt. Matt Snyder, commander of the Marine Division. ‘We don’t like it, but we have no choice.?
The cuts, they say, are carefully planned to impact as few people as possible.
Meanwhile, boats will be shrink-wrapped and stored, not sold.
‘We’re keeping services that affect the biggest population,? said OCSO Undersheriff Mike McCabe. ‘We’d rather not cut the Marine Division, but many people in Oakland County never go near a lake.?
The situation, he noted, could be eased if more money from the county’s 83,000 boat registration fees flowed back to help support the services. As it stands, only about a quarter on every dollar is returned.
In hopes of creating an alternate plan,
Several members of the OCSO met with the Lake Orion Lake Association to discuss alternatives.
To provide the current level of service through a private contract, McCabe said, about 800 patrol hours, would cost the association about $25,000 annually.
‘Everyone on the board is very concerned,? said Strand, who is the association president. ‘Living on the lake, you know how dangerous it can be; every weekend we see accidents just waiting to happen.?
The board, he said, worked out three scenarios for coverage, starting with a bare minimum for holiday weekends’Memorial Day, Fourth of July and Labor day’when boat traffic is heaviest.
For now, the devil’s in the details; how to fund a private contract? No one knows.