11 cities form Valley Police Alliance

Salt Lake County police departments could soon be sharing facilities, working on federal grants together and increasing their buying power.

With West Valley Police Chief Buzz Nielsen leading the way, police officials Tuesday announced the creation of the Valley Police Alliance, a cooperative agreement of 11 agencies that could one day clear the way for a metro police department.

"This lays the groundwork for the next hundred years," Nielsen told the Deseret News last month. "It's limitless what we can come up with."

The alliance includes Sandy, Draper, Midvale, Murray, Cottonwood Heights, Taylorsville, South Salt Lake, Salt Lake City, South Jordan, West Jordan and West Valley City.

South Salt Lake Attorney Dave Carlson said the alliance goes beyond mutual-aid agreements, which already exist among valley agencies.

The alliance's board will be made up of city managers and police chiefs, with trustees running the operations arm.

Increased purchasing power will be the most immediate benefit of the alliance, Nielsen said. Departments could band together to buy ammunition, uniforms and even mobile command centers, and Salt Lake and West Valley could end up sharing an evidence room, Nielsen said.

Purchases would be made on an opt-in basis, and departments will maintain their autonomy and organizational structures.

"The government that's closest to the people and their constituency certainly understand their communities needs," said Cottonwood Heights Police Chief Robby Russo. "But we want to share buying power."

But as municipalities look at ways to cut costs and improve efficiency, Nielsen said he envisions one day creating a metro police department, which would mean consolidating administrative positions and building space.

Salt Lake County Sheriff Jim Winder said his agency would likely participate in opportunities afforded by the Valley Police Alliance in garnering savings through bulk-purchase benefits. But the Valley Police Alliance, Winder said, couldn't be more dissimilar from the planned Unified Police Department.

"These are two completely different issues," he said Tuesday. "The alliance is really just an enhanced version of the current mutual-assistance program, which we've had for years. The UPD is the creation of an entirely new entity that combines many agencies."

The announcement of the new alliance comes as bills work their way through the Legislature that would pave the way for the creation of the UPD.

CONTRIBUTING: Arthur Raymond

E-MAIL: afalk@desnews.com, rpalmer@desnews.com