Del Mar's City Council will vote in the fall regarding a proposal to start its own police department.
Opponents say Del Mar is a small city with a low crime rate that doesn’t need its own police force.
Proponents say more people are moving into the Del Mar area and with more residents comes the need for more protection.
The idea of ending a multi-million dollar contract with the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department has been discussed on several occasions in Del Mar.
City officials say the contract costs residents more than $2 million a year. A statement from the San Diego County Sheriff said the contract is for $1.9 million.
Under that contract, residents receive five patrol deputies, one traffic deputy, and one detective dedicated to Del Mar plus the necessary supervision shared with other cities along the coast, according to an SDSO statement.
“The contract also affords Del Mar the considerable resources of the Sheriff's Department in the event of a major crime, traffic incident, or SWAT call out. There are no supplemental charges for these services,” the statement continued.
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“The Sheriff's Department believes it has… the people and resources to continue to provide the best solution,” the statement reads.
At a meeting Monday, a panel examined whether creating a police force would be the best decision for the city.
"We need to have our own department," said Barry Entous, Del Mar City Council Finance Cmte., Subcmte. Sheriff Contract. "We have no control with the sheriff's [program]. For the dollar amount we're spending on the sheriff we can have so much better service."
Proponents say a police department will address traffic issues near the fairgrounds and the shoreline during the summer as well as patrol the beaches.
In April, city leaders shared results of a study that suggested the city could save up to $365,000 per year if they were to have their own police department.
The study also found that SDSO response times to calls were, on average, nine to 11 minutes.
