Five Macomb County municipalities and the county of Macomb are the first members of a task force formed to research and implement new ways to combine municipal services.
MACRO, the Macomb Area Communities for Regional Opportunities, includes officials from Clinton and Shelby townships, the cities of Sterling Heights, Warren, and Utica, and Macomb County.
Combined, the municipalities make up more than half of
Macomb County's population, and some have already begun discussions about sharing public services prior to the official formation of MACRO, which has met twice to date.
Among the areas of consolidation being discussed as local planners try to avoid eliminating or compromising services are police and fire, libraries, parks and recreation, building and inspection, and information and technology. There is also talk of combining employee training, facility and equipment maintenance, and of forming purchasing cooperatives.
It is the kind of consolidation encouraged by Gov. Rick Snyder in his State of the State address and follows up on a shared services agreement already struck with Shelby and Rochester.
More communities are expected to join MACRO, according to a written announcement of its formation. MACRO will meet at least monthly to discuss consolidation.
Source: City of Sterling Heights, Sue GiallombardoWriter: Kim North Shine
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