East Lyme — Townspeople speaking at a public hearing Wednesday mostly favored the town establishing an independent police department and leaving the Resident State Trooper program in the future, or were neutral on the issue.

Some residents recommended that the police chief, who would be hired under an independent force, should live in town, and that the Board of Police Commissioners should be an elected, not appointed, board.

The Board of Selectmen is considering an ordinance that would establish a Board of Police Commissioners. If the selectmen ultimately vote in favor of the ordinance, the board would set the policies and procedures for the independent police department and hire a police chief.

The selectmen made no decision on Wednesday, but discussed details they would like to work out for the ordinance.

During an Oct. 5 presentation to the selectmen, a task force studying the issue recommended the town create its own police department, primarily for management reasons.

During Wednesday's public hearing, which was attended by about 50 residents, Sgt. Bruce Babcock, who studied the feasibility of moving to an independent police force along with other town sergeants, said the resident trooper program is a large, bureaucratic process and organization.

He said the town has done three studies on moving to an independent police department, dating back to a 1984-5 study that recommended independence.

"The 2016 recommendation is the same, and I think now we are ready," Babcock said.

Several residents said they wanted the police commissioners board to be elected, or comprise a combination of elected and appointed individuals.

First Selectman Mark Nickerson recommended that the Board of Police Commissioners consist of 7 members, including the first selectman, who would serve on the board but not be the chairperson. The other members would be appointed by the Board of Selectmen.

Joe Mingo, a resident, said the members of the police commissioners board should be elected, not appointed, to have a truly independent police force and keep politics out of it.

During deliberations, Selectwoman Rose Ann Hardy said she would like to request research from the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities on how many towns have elected versus appointed boards, as well as the salaries of police chiefs in Connecticut.

Selectman Marc Salerno said that requiring it to be an elected board would potentially limit the pool of applicants. For example, he has found some people who want to be involved with town boards or commissions but lose interest when they are told they have to run for election.

The town's attorney is expected to revise the draft ordinance to reflect the selectmen's comments, and the selectmen are expected to pick up their discussions at their next meeting.

Under an independent police department, the operational budget would be about $206,000, which covers the costs to Waterford for use of its jail, the police chief's salary and benefits, the move from a part-time administrative secretary to a full-time one and a recording secretary for commission meetings, according to Nickerson.

There is also a one-time cost of $5,000 for dispatcher training. In addition, the trooper's salary is paid in arrears, so there will be one year when the town has to pay both the police chief's salary and the trooper's salary, for services the trooper rendered the previous year.

That means between $115,000, $146,000, or $175,000 for the trooper, depending on whether the town would switch to an independent force on March 1, May 1, or July 1, according to Nickerson's presentation.

There are also $68,000 in capital costs required for an independent police department: a used car for the chief, upgrades to the police station and a vehicle computer upgrade, according to his presentation.

Nickerson said the current cost for the resident trooper program is $212,000 annually and expected to rise.

Under the resident trooper program, the state also eventually will require the town to pay $150,000 for upgrades to the state radio system, he said.

Nickerson said whether or not the town moves to an independent department, the town will need a new police building in the future, but it's not part of the decision.

k.drelich@theday.com