Dana Yates / Daily Journal Dispatcher Jennifer Fredstrom fields calls for the Belmont Police Department.

Belmont properties could have a heavy price to pay if the City Council approves a proposal to levy fees on places that require an excessive amount of police response.

The plan, modeled after a Ventura County ordinance, would ultimately assign fines to properties that require frequent visits from police. Opinions are mixed on whether the plan can work and if it would inadvertently discourage people from calling 911 instead of reducing crime at police hot spots. Meanwhile, the police department believes it is premature to take a stance on the proposal.

The proposal was up for an initial discussion Tuesday night, but was tabled because the city attorney was absent. The council could take up the issue as soon as its next meeting in October.

Vice Mayor Bill Dickenson began pushing for the discussion while serving as a planning commissioner more than three years ago. It was an idea sparked by the large number of fire department responses to the former Ralston Village assisted living facility. The fire department is often called to such facilities to help with minor tasks like moving a patient. It’s something that can be done by a private company or more skilled in-house employees and shouldn’t necessarily require the fire department’s help, Dickenson said.

Each such trip can cost the department between $500 and $1,500, Dickenson said.

Since Dickenson’s original push, the fire department instituted some fees to recoup its costs. The police department has not.

Belmont police respond to Carlmont High School more than any other place in the city, aside from the police department itself, according to a survey of police calls over the last year. The high school is followed in frequency of calls by Safeway on El Camino Real, Notre Dame de Namur University and Motel 6.

The survey depicts the number of times a police officer travels to a location, either responding to an emergency call or on their own — for an investigation, said Belmont police Capt. Dan DeSmidt.

It’s too early for the department to take a stance on the proposal, but it does hold concerns on whether such an ordinance would deter people from calling 911, DeSmidt said.

The concerns are shared by at least one other councilmember.

"It’s an interesting proposal but what do you do with all those calls to Carlmont High School? When it comes to schools and places with children, we should not be charging money. I believe more in prevention,” said Councilwoman Coralin Feierbach.

It’s likely the city could exempt places like schools, making places like Motel 6 most likely to get hit with fines. In one year, Motel 6 required 208 police responses. At least one of those calls requires SWAT team response for a police standoff, DeSmidt said.

Dickenson said the city has met numerous times with Motel 6 management to reduce crime there.

"They have made some changes and it stabilized somewhat but it’s still an issue,” Dickenson said.

Dana Yates can be reached by e-mail: dana@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 106.