Des Plaines adopts vehicle policy, plans to cut some take-home cars
For the first time, Des Plaines has a vehicle usage policy in writing — the result of months of debate by aldermen about which employees should be allowed to take home city cars.
And while the policy stops short of saying exactly which of the city's 15 take-home cars will be eliminated, officials say they will be making those cuts soon.
The policy does spell out the vehicles that will stay: cars for the police chief, fire chief, K9 officer, and the city's Homeland Security and emergency management agency deputy executive coordinator.
After 4th Ward Alderman Dick Sayad proposed in May that the city council examine eliminating some take-home vehicles, aldermen eventually reached consensus to leave the decision up to City Manager Mike Bartholomew, who oversees day-to-day city operations.
The policy, adopted this week by the city council, states that vehicles for undercover police officers and “on call” police and fire brass must get approval from Bartholomew. He's has asked the police and fire chiefs to re-evaluate their operational plans and submit formal requests for vehicles in writing.
The city currently has two take-home cars for undercover officers, but Bartholomew said that could change.
“It may be one (vehicle) for six months on a detail. And then it might be two (vehicles) for another six months on a different detail,” he said. “So that's a constantly evolving thing.”
The fire and police departments each have three staffers who are “on call” and allowed to take vehicles home.
“I know it's going to be a significant reduction in what we have now,” Bartholomew said. “I would like it to be eight or nine cars at the most. But we really have to take a look at operationally what kind of changes are we going to make and what's the impact. The last thing I want to do is make an operational change that's going to cause some significant decrease in public safety.”
Mayor Matt Bogusz's city vehicle isn't covered by the policy. Aldermen have the authority to take that car away, but Alderman Patricia Haugeberg, chair of the council's public safety committee, said her colleagues don't have any issues with the mayor retaining the car.
Sayad was the lone alderman to vote against the policy because he said he wanted to see an exact number of which police and fire department vehicles would be eliminated.
The fire and police chiefs are putting together formal policies about which of their employees are entitled to take home city-owned vehicles and the rules surrounding vehicle usage.