Gates Mills Might Outsource Dispatchers

Gates Mills is considering outsourcing its dispatch service in an effort to save the village money.

Mayor Shawn Riley said if it happens, he hopes the village's current dispatchers will be picked by other cities in the area.

Riley believes the move could save the village up to $100,000.

Currently, Gates Milles has a 24-hour service with three people rotating in eight-hour shifts. The village once considered offering its service to other surrounding communities, but realized the equipment costs to accommodate the load wouldn’t be cost effective.

Now officials are looking at communities that could absorb the village without a significant capital investment and a few minor costs. The city’s already reached out to Mayfield Heights, Lyndhurst, Chagrin Falls and Mayfield Village. Some thought has also been given to Highland Heights and Beachwood, Riley said.

Should the measure go forward, Riley said there will still be a need to have some presence at Town Hall during business hours. Also, many of the dispatchers do other office work for the village.

“Whatever community we went to would probably need a couple of new dispatchers. We have high quality people. We would expect that community would hire those people,” Riley said.

No firm date has been set on when this measure could take place.