By Loyd McIntosh, For The Tribune
CENTER POINT — Jefferson County Sheriff Mark Levie Pettway addressed the Center Point Council to discuss contract negotiation concerns during its city council meeting Thursday, Sept. 14.
Relocated to the Center Point Community Center on Sun Hill Road while City Hall undergoes mold mitigation, Pettway and several council members spent more than half an hour in a spirited discussion regarding the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office’s arrangement to provide police protection in the city.
Center Point has been locked in negotiations with the Sheriff’s Office for months and has had some concerns about some of the provisions in a proposed contract from the Sheriff’s Office. At the center of the debate is a mandate that all municipalities receiving police services have the same contract.
Additionally, Place 2 Councilman Glenn Williams and Place 3 Councilwoman Tiffany Collins Moore asked Sheriff Pettway to respond to some of their concerns, such as reported long response times and cost. Williams opened the line of questioning with Pettway asking to explain why the City of Center Point has to pay the Sheriff’s Office for police protection when citizens pay taxes essentially to fund police departments.
“We don’t have a presence in Birmingham. We don’t have a presence in Gardendale. We don’t have a presence in Fultondale. We don’t have a presence in Bessemer. They pay the same taxes as you do,” Pettway said. “If you want a presence to respond immediately and a presence to deter crime and respond to crime immediately, that is what the contract covers.”
He added that his department is constantly asked to amend their arrangement with other municipalities and that he wishes the Sherif’s Office had the manpower to provide unlimited deputies wherever and whenever needed.
“Right now, we have Center Point, we have Pinson, we have Clay, and we have Fairfield that have contracts with us,” Pettway said. “We don’t have an unlimited amount of deputies, and those deputies were once service other areas.”
According to City Attorney Julian Hendrix, the City of Center Point presented a counterproposal to the Sheriff’s Office with a handful of conditions. Among the stipulations are a Sherif’s Office liaison specifically assigned to Center Point, a greater community policing presence, badges on Sherif’s Department cars identifying them as Center Point contracted deputies, and accountability measures to ensure city residents are getting maximum benefit for the $50,000 monthly price tag.
“We want this to ensure that there is some accountability within the contract to ensure that if they did not respond to a call, did not have the liason, or that community policing was not prevalent, we have some way in the contract to go back and say ‘Sherif, you need to comply with these contractual agreements,’” Center Point City Attorney Julian Hendrix said. “We want to ensure that the citizens are getting the most for the money that the city is paying out for the contract.”
Toward the end of the discussion, Pettway appeared to have won the City Council over, even giving his personal phone number to the council with the charge to call him with any questions or concerns. He finished by stating that he wants his department to continue to provide police protection to the residents of Center Point.
“I am not the grinch that stole Center Point,” Pettway said. “I wish I had deputies everywhere.”
Following the meeting, Williams and City Council President D.M. Collins expressed gratitude for Pettway’s willingness to address the council in person. They are confident they can hammer out a contract to protect Center Point’s citizens.
“Everything worked out fine. He answered the questions I wanted him to answer,” Williams said. “I’m very satisfied that he showed up. That’s the main thing.”
“I am hopeful that we are able to maintain a good working relationship with the Sherif’s Department,” Collins said. “I echo what councilman Williams said, I’m very satisfied that Sheriff Pettway came out tonight and was able to answer our questions and hear our concerns. I hope that his council does reach back out to us and considers our counterproposal.”
In other business, the Center Point City Council:
- Was forced to delay an evidentiary hearing regarding possible public nuisance issues at 2705 8th Street.
- Approved an amendment to the city’s business license.
- The City Council unanimously approved an amendment to the city’s business license fee, raising the first-year fee from $100 to $200. Additionally, the amendment eliminates percentage-based fees for many businesses. The change means those businesses will now only pay the city’s base fee. The amendment is projected to provide an additional $460,000 in revenue to the city.
- Approved an amendment to the city’s public nuisance ordinance.
- Approved an invoice from John’s Plumbing in the amount of $9,520 for work to reroute the water lines from the sanctuary to the community center.
- Approved an Economic Development Grant in the amount of $10,000.
- Approved the purchase of a car for the Senior Center in the amount of $26,766.