ELY— Babbitt Mayor Andrea Zupancich approached the Ely City Council this week seeking discussions about a potential merger of the two cities’ police departments, as Babbitt continues to deal with staffing shortages and budget constraints.
The request comes months after a Babbitt city council meeting where residents packed the chambers to protest proposed cuts to police and library services amid a $1.3 million budget shortfall.
“I am here to request on behalf of the city to see if the council would be open to talking to our council about the possibility of merging our police departments,” Zupancich told the Ely council.
Zupancich explained that Babbitt has been actively pursuing several alternatives to address its policing challenges. The city has requested cost proposals from both St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office and East Range Police Department, which currently serves Aurora and Hoyt Lakes.
St. Louis County proposed providing four officers plus 100 hours of overtime to maintain 24/7 coverage at a cost approximately $100,000 below Babbitt’s current police budget. East Range submitted a similar proposal that would save the city about $60,000.
“We just need to look at all our options,” Zupancich said.
The mayor noted that East Range officials had questioned why Babbitt wasn’t exploring a partnership with Ely, given the cities’ proximity. She said Babbitt had been told previously that Ely wasn’t interested in a merger, though that information hadn’t come directly from Ely’s council or mayor.
Babbitt’s police department is currently operating with just two officers, down from its authorized five-officer complement. The department is missing a chief and two additional officers.
The staffing shortage follows former Babbitt Police Chief Troy Bissonette’s decision to join the Ely Police Department.
To maintain coverage, Babbitt has established what Zupancich described as an agreement with surrounding police departments, paying officers from other agencies to work shifts at time-and-a-half rates.
“We’re not going to eliminate 24/7 coverage at all,” Zupancich said. “Public safety is very important to us.”
The merger inquiry comes against a backdrop of significant financial challenges in Babbitt. During a four-hour council meeting in September, residents confronted officials over a proposed 20 percent property tax levy increase and budget cuts to essential services.
The meeting exposed years of financial mismanagement, with the city’s 2024 audit delayed for months due to problematic bookkeeping practices. Auditors discovered that Babbitt’s campground, long promoted as self-sustaining, had been operating at a $40,000 annual deficit, with bond payments previously hidden through an internal rent collection system.
Department heads had requested budgets exceeding $4 million while revenue projections hovered around $2.7 million, creating the substantial shortfall.
Zupancich acknowledged that any potential merger would require time to negotiate and implement. Both St. Louis County and East Range estimated a three-month timeline to implement their respective proposals.
“We know it’s not a fast process,” she said.
The mayor noted that Babbitt currently has two potential officers in the hiring pipeline, which would also require approximately three months to complete.
The Ely council directed Police Chief Chad Houde to hold initial meetings with Zupancich to explore the proposal.