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SOLEDAD, Calif.- Unanimously Soledad city council members gave the green light to pursue a merger with all 4 cities in south Monterey County. The idea of sharing resources has been around ever since all 4 cities shared a state grant that helped them combat gang violence. They called it 4 cities for peace. The success there led to the cities sharing their police force resources.
Currently all 4 cities combined are paying over 700 thousand dollars to their 4 police chiefs, eliminating 3 will save the cities money. Police Chief Eric Sills is currently working as chief for both Soledad and Greenfield and said this merger will result in a faster response time from officers during emergencies
"Because we have collaborated the suppression efforts with all 4 cities, all 4 cities start sending personal so when it gets down to an officer level and a non-political one its very easy to implement this. And the officers really seem enthusiastic about the idea of being able to work together," said Sills.
And even with the possibility of not being chief anymore he said he will still play role either way.
"There's going to be a position for everybody. Under the model every city is still going to have to have some person there 24/7 that's responsible for the city," said Sills.
