Gulfport Police Dispatch: Time to Clear the Air and Understand the Facts

Public safety people are catastrophic thinkers. They have to be. They look for the worst case scenario and go with it. Most of the time their lives depend on it.

It sounds like some of that thought process is taking hold in the Gulfport Police dispatch discussion.   

Nobody wants to see a job outsourced. Nobody wants to see a job eliminated. So it's pretty easy to see why the police officers, with a little encouragement from the Comm center people, would raise the issue as a total outsourcing of the Police Department.

It's time for the Gulfport City Manager and the City Council to clear the air and offer a clear explanation of the issue. It's also time for the PBA to offer a well-reasoned, informed position.

From a totally broader view, there are way too many police departments and fire departments in a county that becomes more homogenous every day.

With City revenues decreasing and likely to stay low for years to come, small governments in Pinellas County cannot afford to continue to overlay costly services like public safety for much longer.

Consolidations are likely to continue and fighting them with tactics designed to scare the public is not worthy or reflective of the public safety community.

e-mail Doc at: dr.webb@verizon.net