VBT OKs agreement with Western Wayne Co. Special Operations Team

After 32 years of operation, the Western Wayne County Special Operations Team has formalized its partnership with Van Buren Township with a Memo of Understanding.
At its regular meeting Sept. 19, the VBT Board of Trustees unanimously adopted the MOU. Eight other Western Wayne County communities involved in the consortium will be seeking approvals from their governmental bodies, as well.
Members of the team are Canton Township Police and Fire and City of Livonia Police and Fire, along with the police departments of City of Plymouth, Plymouth Township, Redford Township, City of Northville, Garden City, City of Wayne, and Van Buren Township.
VBT Public Safety Director Greg Laurain said VBT has been involved with this team since its conception in 1985 and has utilized the team many times in critical incidents above and beyond the capability of road patrol units in the township. Over the years VBT officers have served in key positions on the team.
Director Laurain said he had served on the team for 27 years and was commander of the team for ten years. Currently Lt. Mark Buckberry is assistant team commander.
He said each agency pays $7,000 per year as dues. There 32 members on the team and five fire fighter team medics. Among other equipment, they have a robot and ammunition.
He said over all those years there has never been any formal agreement or contract among participating municipal police and fire agencies involved in this consortium. The team has operated and deployed on the premise of mutual aid between participating agencies during critical incidents within their respective jurisdictions.
The WWSOT oversight board is comprised of the chief law enforcement official or their designee from each participating agency. They meet quarterly to receive updates from the team commander and discuss the business of the team.
Laurain said recently the WWSOT board decided to develop a Memorandum of Understanding going forward to officially address and define the scope and authority of the team.
The Memo has been reviewed by all the participating agencies’ legal departments, including the VBT attorneys, who approved it and forwarded it to the township board for approval.
A participating agency will provide 90 days of written notice of its intent to withdraw from the team.
In other business at the 19-minute meeting on Sept. 19, the board:
• Approved the 2018 Board of Trustees meeting schedule. Most are held at 7 p.m. on the first and third Tuesdays of each month in the board room at township hall. Only one meeting will be held in January, on Tuesday, Jan. 9, and only one meeting each in May, July, and November. On Aug. 13 and 14 the budget preparation meetings will be held during normal business hours. Work/study meetings are held at 4 p.m. the day before a regular meeting;
• Heard Trustee Paul White say that during budget talks he asked for the numbers of ordinance violations for several years and was told in 2015 there were 443, in 2016 there were 639, and in 2017 to date there were 1,217. He said these included property maintenance, tall weeds, blight, waste deposits, vehicle parking and other offenses. He thanked Director Laurain, Police Chief Wright, and Police Lt. Charles Bazzy for their work on ordinance enforcement;
• Heard Supervisor Kevin McNamara read a letter to the Public Safety Department from Sharron and Clarence Russell, who praised the professionalism of Officers Hernandez, Fey, and Barry in assisting with a difficult and trying case. They praised the officers’ compassion and caring and their ability to bring a stressful situation to a safe conclusion. They asked for the letter to be put into the personnel files of all three officers and Supervisor McNamara said that would be done;
• Heard Director Laurain thank all the employees who came out to staff Public Safety Day the previous Saturday. He thanked Walgreen’s for their donations of food and water and thanked Atchinson Ford for opening their business location on a very busy day for sales. He also thanked the VBT Downtown Development Authority, Toby Leis of C.A.L. Plumbing, and DTE for their generosity. Trustee White also thanked the Public Safety Department for the event. The next Public Safety Day is planned for Sept 15, 2018 and White encouraged residents to attend;
• Heard Clerk Leon read a letter from the Salvation Army thanking VBT for participating in the Back to School Blitz which provided supplies to students and teachers; and
• Heard Trustee White ask why the township doesn’t have a fishing contest on Belleville Lake and Supervisor McNamara said that was a very good suggestion.