According to the Marshall Independent, the City of Minneota, located on Hwy 68 northwest of Marshall, is considering several service reductions in order to make up for potential losses in LGA, among which is reorganizing or elminating its police department. The city has also proposed freezing city wages, delaying equipment purchases, reducing the city swimming pool, and reducing money budgeted for planting shade trees.
For the residents of Minneota, reorganizing or eliminating the police department would most likely mean contracting with the county for public safety services. While doing so may reduce overall spending on public safety, it would also lead to slower response times and decreased police presence in schools and at community functions. In the long-term, as the Minneota police chief notes, eliminating the city police department now will make it increasingly difficult to reestablish a city force in the future.
The proposed cuts to LGA will have long-lasting effects in cities across Minnesota—whether cities decide to reduce public safety personnel, close a library or a park, delay road maintenance, or hold off on purchases and construction projects (which will dramatically escalate in price the longer they are delayed). Short-term fixes may get the state through this particular crisis, but will only make us weaker when the next crisis comes along.