Just wondering
 

I wonder if the counties could give traffic enforcement powers to certain retired police officers who also work for Community Watch. Equip their vehicles with the flashing BLUE lights, in place of YELLOW. Seems like a win-win situation.
All comments welcome.:coolsmiley::ho:

Are you expecting them to pull over all traffic offenders and have to run checks on each speed/DUI/stop sign infraction? I can't imagine why the Community Watch patrol would WANT that power - especially here in the Villages! You could not pay me enough to do it!

Not only couldn't they pay you enough, they wouldn't pay you at all. You aren't a retired police officer. It would give retired officers a little extra spending money, plus make the roads a whole lot safer.:boom:

Just wondering
 

Apparently not so much.

Liability. Liability, Liability- and Liability.

And don't forget...liability.

Would they wear a hat that said retired PD. So we would behave

I think retired police mostly have good pensions and don't want to work any more

In order to have law enforcement powers they would have to be part of a police force. So what you are proposing is TV's own police force.

Absolutely not. The sheriff (s) can appoint special deputies, and limit their powers to traffic offenses. The liability would fall under the county sheriffs.

[QUOTE=BobnBev;1200665. It would give retired officers a little extra spending money, plus make the roads a whole lot safer.:boom:[/QUOTE]




Are you saying pay them on commission?

Personally I don't see why a city of 100000 doesn't have its own police force other than cost.

But if they become part of the Sheriffs dept not community watch they would draw a salary from the Sheriff. Depending on where they retired from that could have an impact on any pension they receive. Not to mention the difficulty in getting retirees from different states all certified under Florida laws. and it's highly unlikely that a county Sheriff wants to take on the paperwork involved.

So the only logical solution is to form a TV police dept. 50000 homes times $100 each works out to 5 mil could get a lot for the money.

And another thought, Anyone performing traffic stops would need to be in uniform and armed.

I would really hate to see this happen, regardless of who pays for it. The fact is that personalities change as we age. (Think of the retired officer who shot and killed the man in the theater for texting.) Plus, the level of training for police officers varies so much from community to community, let alone from state to state.

Things work pretty well here the way they are. We are in three counties and thus are patrolled by different entities (Sumter and Marion County Sheriffs and Lady Lake Police). All three forces seem to do a great job and cooperate well with each other.

This is definitely not a boat I want to see rocked.

I am curious, in order to have a police force would The Villages have to first become a town or city so that the police force could then be "recognized" as a legal enforcement agency? Otherwise, wouldn't they then be an "armed security team"? I really don't know, perhaps someone else would know the answer? Should this be the case, then everything that is great about living in the Villages goes out the window.............

Ya got that right, PB!

For there to be a need to make The Villages "a whole lot safer" with this proposal, this place must be very dangerous relative to driving and traffic. I am not aware of any official police data stating how dangerous The Villages is relative to other local areas.

Yep, I agree with you. Leave it to the professionals.

The Villages IS a city and as Redwitch said we cover three counties and the three police departments do a great job.

TV is not a dangerous to live.

Don't think so.....
 

1. The Villages is not a city. The politics of incorporating as a city and pre-empting part of the tax base from three counties and the City of Lady Lake would be virtually impossible politically, not to mention the difficulty with the various taxing districts we now operate under.

2. The Sheriff's Offices have budgets. They could not add more paid personnel without getting their respective County Commissions to raise their budgets, which would probably mean raising taxes. Don't hold your breath until that happens.

3. Even Reserve or Auxiliary Deputies would have to be trained in all aspects of Florida Law, and pass physical fitness, driving and firearms testing annually. Another BIG expense. And as a previously poster has said, repeatedly, liability, liability, liability.

4. I don't know how it is in Lake, Sumter and Marion Counties, but in Hillsborough, where I am from, Reserve II (Auxiliary) Deputies (who have never passed full Police Academy training) cannot perform law enforcement duties unless in the presence of a full-time Certified Deputy.

5. The Villages could hire a licensed guard service to provide "Security Guards" for security purposes, but they would not have law enforcement powers.

6. The need has not been demonstrated. It was simply someone's thought that perhaps we could get a little more traffic enforcement at a cheap price.

Well, no....
 

The Villages is not a city. Being a city requires incorporation as a city, and recognition by the State. The Villages is a census-designated place which originated in Sumter County, Florida. It shares its name with a broader master-planned age-restricted community that spreads into portions of Lake and Marion counties

Don't forget the FHP
 

Just as a matter of interest, part of The Villages is in Lake County. There are three Counties and the City of Lady Lake policing various parts of the area. Not to mention the Florida Highway Patrol on all State Roads.

And in all of these areas there are various federal law enforcement and different state and federal regulatory agencies operating in areas that you don't even think about. Add Community Watch and all of the traffic cameras and surveillance areas in the town squares and in the entrances to the individual Villages, and it is no wonder the crime rate is comparatively low for such a populous area.

Pretty sure you're wrong unless I'm missing something.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Villages,_Florida

The US Census ranked The Villages as the fastest-growing U.S. city for the second year in a row (during the 12 months ended July 2014)

Maybe there is something I don't understand about a CDP?

I don't think a CDD's structure allows for its own police force.

And if TV is a city, why is there no mayor? I agree with Carl that it isn't a city.

Everything I read says that TV is a city but it's 2 to 1 so I guess I'm wrong. I concede.

Good call Walter.

TV is bigger than many cities, and has many of the same characteristics of a city. But it is technically a CDD, a specific development designation somewhat similar to a city, but different in some very important ways.

Where in the world did that come from? :ohdear: They would be paid from the sheriff's budget.

This thread with few exception illustrates how little some resident understand the government model etc of The Villages. The community district model clearly speaks out to the fact that it was organized with no policing powers. This model has worked well. Crime has remained at a low ebb thanks to the Sheriffs Dept, Lady Lake Police, State Troopers and the watchful eye of Community Watch.

The demands made by some residents on these pages convince me that TVLSI (Developer) may be better at the management of this community because there are a number of residents that keep trying to fix something that "ain't" broke. They keeping inviting regulations that are unnecessary and will interfere with our way of life. And last but not least many of their suggestions seem to be made without the thought of the economic consequences.

Perhaps we all would be better off if we kick around our thoughts with our neighbors and consider their responses before we post here. Because those 3:00 o'clock in the morning ideas often lead to the road of "I should have had a V8".:ohdear:

Personal Best Regards:

Ditto

I like V-8

I'm reading this thread and am wondering do any of you live here.

From the air it sure doesn't look like a city. As the song goes...

Little boxes on the hillside,
Little boxes made of ticky tacky,
Little boxes on the hillside,
Little boxes all the same.
There's a green one and a pink one
And a blue one and a yellow one,
And they're all made out of ticky tacky
And they all look just the same.

And the people in the houses
All went to the university,
Where they were put in boxes
And they came out all the same,
And there's doctors and lawyers,
And business executives,
And they're all made out of ticky tacky
And they all look just the same.

And they all play on the golf course
And drink their martinis dry,
And they all have pretty children
And the children go to school,
And the children go to summer camp
And then to the university,
Where they are put in boxes
And they come out all the same.

And the boys go into business
And marry and raise a family
In boxes made of ticky tacky
And they all look just the same.
There's a green one and a pink one
And a blue one and a yellow one,
And they're all made out of ticky tacky
And they all look just the same.

Would they get fre cigars at Garvino's ?

Most will not get it..... but it's a good one.:1rotfl::1rotfl::1rotfl:

Wikpedia????
 

I am reminded of the university professor who announced on the first day of class, "If any of you turns in a paper in which you use Wikipedia as a resource, you will fail this course."

Wikipedia is an "open source" resource. Anyone can go in and write anything, and in most cases can edit anything that has already been written. If you will look at the entry that you linked you will see the illustration of a pencil to the right top of each area of information. If you click on that pencil YOU can change the entry to whatever you want it to say.

In addition, the statement that refers to The Villages as a "city" has a numbered footnote. If you go to that footnote you will find that the source used by the Wikipedia editor was a Fox News article, which contained several other errors.

Community Development Districts are authorized by the State of Florida to be special taxing districts for the purpose of funding community improvements. They do not constitute an incorporated City or Town.

Great reply.

Thank you Carl. I am smarter today than I was yesterday because of you.

Yes, Carl is a very, very smart individual. I was very, very foolish to question him. I will never, ever question him again.:bigbow::bigbow:

Just a bit of additional info...

The US Census has several "fastest growing" lists they publish annually. The one referred to in this post is for "Metropolitan Areas", a very generic term. For example, a nearby metro area is Tampa-St. Petersburg. The Census studies do not care about the specifics of type of government or anything like that. They are just rating high population areas.