The Hideout Town Council last week authorized their Mayor to pursue an agreement with the Wasatch County Sheriff for additional police coverage.
Hideout Mayor Phil Rubin said the proposed Memorandum of Understanding (or MOU) with the county is an idea they’ve discussed for a year or two.
He said it would provide an additional 16 hours of coverage a week, with officers attending to the town four times a week, on a varying schedule for days and hours.
“Our primary drivers for this are traffic control, enforcement, especially around some of the parking issues, particularly with the construction guys, having a visible presence in the town, and helping us understand whether we need to do things differently for security purposes. Are we seeing things that would encourage someone who’s intent on house-breaking or something—give them a signal that this would be a good house to break into, that type of thing.”
He said the cost would be $70,000 a year, covering some time in both the years 2020 and 2021. If the town contributed $35,000 more, that would cover their entire fiscal year of 2021.
The Mayor said Wasatch is a large county, and the Sheriff ‘s Department generally doesn’t have much time to service them beyond emergency calls.
“We get what the current Wasatch County budget allows, which is minimal coverage, basically 911-type response, vs. a greater level of coverage.”
Hideout is at the northeastern tip of Wasatch County. But Mayor Rubin said that Midway also has a similar MOU, where that city pays for staff that amounts to an additional officer or officer -and-a-half.
The Hideout Council voted unanimously for the Agreement. Mayor Rubin said he and Town Attorney Polly McLean will work out the finer details of the MOU.