Despite opposition and lingering questions from residents, Mableton leaders are moving ahead with standing up the city’s own police department.
Why it matters: Mableton’s elected officials say breaking up with Cobb County will allow it to have better control over how police services are allocated in the city.
- But many residents have said they are happy with the Cobb County Police Department patrolling Mableton, located west of Atlanta.
- It also signifies Mableton’s shift from the “city-lite” form of government residents said they thought they would have if they incorporated.
The latest: The Mableton City Council voted Monday to establish a 4.5 millage rate to fund its own public safety division. The rate would be applied like a property tax, but revenue generated from the millage rate would only be used for public safety.
Zoom in: City leaders estimate the rate would generate the $21 million needed to start its own police department.
- “Instead of collecting the money and giving it over to the county, I think if we’re going to spend that kind of money, we might as well have control,” said City Manager William “Bill” Tanks.
What they’re saying: Several residents spoke out against the new tax rate, noting many of their neighbors are on fixed incomes and may struggle to pay the annual tax, which is about $630 on a home valued at $300,000.
- Residents also said they don’t think $21 million would be enough to start a police department and called on the city to slow down the process.
- “Mableton was built on a city-lite model, and now here we are, three years later, going into full-service mode,” one resident said.
- Debora Herndon, the only council member to vote against the tax rate, said she understands the desire for Mableton to create its own police department, but “to do it with our backs against the wall and in such a short period of time … is a disservice to our citizens here.”
Between the lines: Mableton has not discussed whether a fire department would be part of its new public safety division…