Manatee sheriff on patrol for funding

Having 10 more deputies patrolling the roadways won’t be enough to start a new Lakewood Ranch-centric district for the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office, but it will help the Sheriff’s Office deal with growth.

The proposed fiscal year 2017-18 budget presented by Manatee County Administrator Ed Hunzeker on May 30 includes 10 positions for the Sheriff’s Office — more than any other year in a decade.

But Manatee County Sheriff Rick Wells still hopes to negotiate for more.

“We need 10 positions just for the roads to keep up with growth, but the population doesn’t just affect the road deputies,” he said. 

During a budget workshop June 14, he is expected to ask Manatee County commissioners for four corrections deputies for the Manatee County Jail, two new detectives for narcotics investigations, a sexual predator detective and a part-time crimes against children aid.

“We’re still hopeful there’s negotiating,” Wells said. “The commission hasn’t made a decision.”

Wells sees the new positions as a step toward the long-term goal of the Sheriff’s Office to create a fourth patrol district that would focus on the Lakewood Ranch area. The North District currently covers territory north of the river and virtually all of Manatee County east of Interstate 75.

Creating a new district would require four squads of four deputies with four sergeants, two lieutenants and one captain, Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Dave Bristow said. That would be about 23 certified deputies, plus support employees. In total, the Sheriff’s Office needs about 50 more deputies to be staffed appropriately for the county’s population, Bristow said.

The proposed $615 million net budget keeps property tax rates the same for the 11th consecutive year and is $47 million above the county’s current net budget. It also signifies that Manatee County government is past a decade-long need to use reserves.

“It has been more than a decade since we’ve seen this type of growth in the tax base,” Hunzeker said. “This year will be one of setting priorities.”

The commissioners and Hunzeker agreed the county must work diligently to address issues such as health care, safety, employee benefits and salaries and stress on the county’s workforce.