Menlo Park could save at least $6M by outsourcing its police services and have the same or better coverage:

Agencies which have their own Police Department:

Atherton
As of the census of 2000, there were
7,194 people
4.9 square miles (12.8 km²)
Police budget $4.9 M
$681 per capita

Redwood City
As of the census[1] of 2008, there were
75,508 people
34.6 sq miles
Police budget $31.7 M
$419 per capita

Palo Alto
As of the census of 2000, there were 58,598
people
23.7 sq miles
Police budget $29M
$494 per capita

Foster City
As of the census of 2000, there are 28,803
people
The city has a total area of 19.9 square
miles (51.6 km²), of which 3.8 square miles
(9.7 km²) is land and 16.2 square miles
(41.9 km²) is water.
Police budget $9.6 M
$333 per capita

Burlingame
As of the census of 2000, there were 28,158
people
The city has a total area of 15.6 km² (6.0 mi²).
11.2 km² (4.3 mi²) of it is land and 4.4 km²
(1.7 mi²) of it (28.19%) is water.
Police budget $9.5M
$337 per capita

Hillsborough
As of the census[5] of 2000, there were
10,825 people
The town has a total area of 6.2 square miles
(16.1 km²), all of it land.
Police budget $8M
$739 per capita

Los Altos
The population was 27,693 according to the
2000 census.
6.3 square miles (16.4 km²).
Police dept budget $13.46 M
$485 per capita

Menlo Park
As of the census of 2000, there were 30,785
people
17.4 square miles (45 km2), of which
10.1 square miles (26 km2) is land
and 7.3 square miles (19 km2) is water. Police services budget $14.69 M
$477.148 per capita

East Palo Alto
As of the census of 2009, there were 35,791 people,
2.6 square miles (6.7 km²), of which 2.5 square miles (6.6 km²) are land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²) of it (0.78%) are water.
Police budget $10,262,651
$287 per capita

Agencies which contract out their police services:

Saratoga
The population was 30,318 at the 2007 census.
The city has a total area of 21.1 square miles
(31.4 km²)
Police costs via County Sheriff $4.34 M
$143 per capita

Woodside
11.8 square miles (30.5 km²)
As of the census of 2000, there were
5,352 people
Police services via County Sheriff $1.3 M
$242 per capita

Portola Valley
The population was 4,462 at the 2000 census
9.2 square miles (23.7 km²)
Police services via Sheriff $498,601
$111 per capita

San Carlos
The population was 27.238 in 2008
5.93 square miles
Police services via Sheriff's $6.8 M
$248.62 per capita








Menlo Fire's Per Capita Cost to Atherton: $1,400

Glass House states:"Menlo Fire's Per Capita Cost to Atherton: $1,400"

Wrong. The Fire District's budget is $28,471,000 serving approximately 92,000 for a per capita cost of $309

Some nearby cities and towns will be devoting nearly 50% of their budgets just to pay pensions and healthcare benefits for their retired employees. Imagine 50% of a municipality's revenues allocated to non-service expenses (ie, not roads, not services, not schools, not current employees) before they are able to spend the first dollar on anything else to serve their citizens!

We can ignore the problem and try to raise taxes but you simply can't raise taxes fast enough to catch up with the ever increasing pension and healthcare benefit expense. We can also cut services (increase class size, lay off fire fighters, closing parks, etc.), but eventually that will catch up with us, too.

An alternative is to consider new paradigms. One of those new ideas is consolidation which should provide economies of scale and reduce redundancies, especially duplication of expensive administration. Is it the ONLY answer? No, of course not. But it may be the easiest way to maintain services at a reasonable cost. Of course, it will mean elimination of some jobs as consolidation occurs. That is always painful, especially for the people holding those jobs.

Of course, if you have other ideas, you should share them.

We'd need fewer police if we had fewer criminals. We'd have fewer criminals if we had more money for schools. We'd have more money per student if we controlled the size of families. Instead of tax breaks for having more kids, lets charge more taxes if you have more kids. In other words pay for what you reap. Also no more automatic citizenship if a noncitizen has a chip here. It's all a simple matter of economics.

That should read - if a noncitizen gives birth to a child here.

This is how it works: When there was a limited number of freshman officers available to hire in the boom years, the union could tell each city "Hey, pay the going rate or all your "good" officers will skip to Danville". Now, after years of wage and benefit raises "to maintain morale", there are hundreds of ex-policemen on the street due to budget cuts notably from Oakland and SJ layoffs. And the bargaining now? The Menlo sergeants DELAY the next raise for two years and finally kick in a bit more towards our own retirements. Wow, some give back for a bunch of kids who started at $97K in a lovely town and looking forward to retiring at 50 to collect OVER $4 MILLION in retirement (not counting cost of living increases) and full healthcare. For a job that's safer and easier than construction, not a bad frickin deal holding on to all the goodies. Oh yeah, the other "giveback" was that future police hires (not the current guys) will have to wait to age 55 before collecting those fat retirement checks. Guess that sets the stage for the upcoming line officers contract (they get an average $3.03 MILLION in retirement if they never get a raise in 30 years).
Make sure your kids get good jobs, someone needs to continue the gravy train of public funds.

Peter the PD will not save six million dollars your wrong and your math is wrong. Stick to your fire nonsense. The fire department is the biggest waste. Yet we have to pay your special district through property taxes so you have your little kingdom. No thgat is a joke. Time to can the 24 hour shifts. Oh yea tell your fire chief buddy to stop leaking wrong facts.

Instead of meddling in Menlo Park and Atherton why dont you compare East Palo alto and the waste that goes on there? Better yet point out how all the cities contribute to that city and EPA never cooperates with other cities and agencies. In fact Chief Davis is responsible for most of it. Go Peter

Cities and towns aren't considering consolidation because they think it will cost more. They are considering it to save money.

In the case of Atherton with such a small police department, savings are relatively easy to identify. In larger cities like Menlo Park, it's probably more difficult, but that doesn't mean it shouldn't be subject to a detailed analysis.