MEXICO — The Mexico and Rumford Boards of Selectmen will meet at 6 p.m. Dec. 11 in the Calvin P. Lyons Room of the Town Office to continue discussion on the possibility of merging police services.
Dixfield police Chief Richard A. Pickett will present a proposal for one police department to serve all three towns.
Since September 2013, Mexico and Rumford have been looking at ways to consolidate services and save money. They hired Municipal Resources, a consulting company from New Hampshire, which said both towns could save money by merging.
During a Nov. 24 meeting in Mexico, Oxford County Sheriff Wayne Gallant presented a two-year contract proposal to take over police coverage in Rumford and Mexico.
Gallant said it would cost the towns $1,321,251 for the first year and would decrease to $1,185,851 during the second year. The proposal would provide 12 deputies to both towns.
Following Gallant’s presentation, Rumford police Chief Stacy Carter and Mexico police Chief Roy Hodsdon presented a proposal to combine departments and work out of the Mexico police station, which is more spacious than Rumford’s station.
Carter and Hodsdon said that merging Rumford and Mexico’s police departments would cost $1,386,597, a savings of $120,632 for each town. There would be 15 officers. Currently, Rumford has 12 and Mexico has five.
Municipal Resources President Don Jutton offered a third proposal to combine the two police departments with one chief, but structure it differently. Jutton’s proposal would cost $1,195,723.
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