The Manchester Board of Aldermen recently heard from Manchester Police Chief Tim Walsh on a proposed plan to renew the city's contract with the Ballwin Police Department for dispatching services.

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Currently, police 911 calls to Manchester are handled through Ballwin. The contract expires the end of this year and Walsh put together an estimated proposal to renew the contract with Ballwin for another four years.

Prices are not exact because ultimately the annual cost depends on the amount of calls that come in, additional manpower provided by Ballwin to Manchester and other factors that change throughout the year.

However, Walsh presented the following information and estimated cost for service with Ballwin for 2013.

• The estimated cost for the 2013 contract is $ 11,903.79 per month which equals $ 142,845.39 for the entire year.
• The cost for the 2012 agreement is $ 12,057.52 per month which equals $144, 690 for the entire year.
• The proposed contract for 2013 will be $1,844.83 less than what will be paid in 2012. 
• The proposed contract is for four years and while their are some issues based on activity, much of the cost will be based upon the percentage of population of each community. 

The cost estimates are based on the 2012 estimated total of $142,845.39 (which is based on service, calls and additional factors). It's a four-year contract and each year the total is based on police dept activity and calls.

When Walsh explained the proposal to aldermen, Alderman Marilyn Ottenad asked if he'd gotten price quotes from other dispatch centers or police departments. Walsh said he had not, but Ottenad wants him to shop around for additional dispatching contract quotes.

Check back to Town and Country - Manchester Patch later this week for more details and why Walsh said Ballwin is the best solution for Manchester police dispatch.

Other Business:

Aldermen voted to approve the city's request to increase the 2012 general fund budget by $110,910 and reduce the beginning 2013 general fund budget by $110,910.  As previously reported by Patch, the city is asking alderman to approve $50,000 for an ongoing lawsuit and an additional $51,520 for the salary and benefits of the new city administrator. 

Aldermen also voted to enter into a $10,325 contract with Gamma Tree Experts for tree trimming services for various right-of-way areas throughout the city. 

See agenda and supporting documents above for complete details.