The ball is finally rolling.
The new Citizens Police Study Committee assembled for the first time Tues., Nov. 28, to begin sorting fact from fiction in the debate over maintaining the status quo with the Clarkston Police, or reverting to fulltime protection from the Oakland County Sheriff’s Department.
Lopping off the police force would allow the city to reclaim the department’s $240,000 budget, a measure some believe would ultimately lead to lower property taxes.
While preliminary estimates show that subcontracting with Independence Township for service by the OCSD would cost the city only about half of the current police budget, many say the issue boils down to the level of service residents would receive.
Proponents in each camp have voiced sound ? but often emotional ? arguments. With no agreement in sight, the city council has organized a committee to tackle the issue that first gained a foothold during last year’s budget meetings.
The committee, comprised of eight men and two women volunteers, has been assigned the task of unearthing the city’s collective opinion and presenting a report with recommendations to the city council.
‘The biggest challenge will be sifting through all the information,? said former City Councilman Scott Meyland, who was elected to council in 1999, but opted not to run for re-election in November.
‘There are a lot of rumors and opinions out there, but we’ve got a good group put together and I’m confident we’ll be able to sift through all of it and get to the facts.?
Meyland will serve as the committee’s temporary chairman until all

members are present for a final decision; only six of the committee members were able to make it to Tuesday’s meeting.
Longtime Clarkston resident Tom Stone, also on the committee, suggested the group focus time and resources on three key points:
? Service: What services do residents expect from the police?
? Cost: Are citizens willing to pay for the services they expect?
? Performance: Citizens may want, and agree to pay for certain services, but are they getting what they pay for?
During the first meeting, members primarily discussed how to best organize efforts, communicate with residents and business owners, and make sure anyone who wanted a voice in the matter was given the opportunity to be heard.
‘We’ve got some good brain power in that committee,? said City Councilman Bill Rausch, who was appointed police liaison after being elected to council Nov. 7. ‘We’re going to gather all our facts, throw everything on the table and make an intelligent decision.?
Neither Rausch, who served 29 years as an Independence Township volunteer firefighter, nor any other current city council members are sitting on the police committee.
Mayor Sharron Catallo has asked the group for a preliminary report by Jan. 22, with a final report and recommendation due by April 9.
The committee will spend the next several weeks in informational meetings with the Clarkston Police, OCSD, Clarkston-area Chamber of Commerce and city council. They will also begin constructing a survey to be distributed to citizens and businesses.
Meanwhile, the group has set up a special email address and can be contacted with questions or comments at clarkstonpsc@yahoo.com.