CUMBERLAND — Officials from Allegany County and the city of Cumberland are in the preliminary stages of consolidating one or more efforts that could be seen as a duplication of services.

County Commissioner Jim Stakem said economic development, housing and permits all could be under one umbrella. Stakem said he and Cumberland Mayor Lee Fiedler lunch together frequently. A recent conversation covered a wide range of issues, he said, on how the city and county can be better partners.

“We talked about a lot of different items,” Stakem said. “One was the possibility of doing more partnership in economic development, which I think we both agreed upon. We’d have to look and see if that would be a good move.”

The county and city already have consolidated the emergency dispatch center, and city elections now occur at the same time county elections do, he said. Each act was done in order to save money and provide more efficient services to residents.

The current working agreement, established through a memorandum of understanding, allows Cumberland Economic Development Coordinator Brenda Smith to work out of the County Office Complex one day a week. In return, the county pays 20 percent of the position’s salary on top of the county’s seven-person department.

The city also has Terri Bennett working out of the Small Business Resource Center on Baltimore Street. That position is funded through the Appalachian Regional Commission.

“Let’s say (Smith) joined our office,” Stakem said. “She’s already there one day a week. We have to look and see if that would be a good move. I think most people think it would be.”

City Administrator Jeff Repp noted the city’s efforts toward retaining and expanding its retail base, while the county has typically focused on industrial job opportunities. He noted there has been “nothing formalized into concrete proposals.”

Repp said the idea of putting one or two county workers downtown has been part of a “wide-ranging discussion of changes that we may envision.”

“At this point, I don’t think we were interested in any kind of a full-scale consolidation.”

Repp said the city created Smith’s position about seven years ago “with the purpose of focusing on retail economic development in the city of Cumberland. By the county’s admission, that’s not what they were in to. Unless the city stepped forward, that (need) wasn’t going to be filled. I have not seen any change in that position by the county.”

Until now, perhaps. Matt Diaz, county director of economic development, said it’s an area the county is willing to look at. He said consolidation of the two governments’ efforts could be a reality.

“There have been times when we’ve kind of broached the subject,” Diaz said, “and asked, ‘wouldn’t it be great?’ ” if the two were combined.

“If there’s a way to bring things under an umbrella, it’s always worth discussing. If (consolidation) was ever on the table, obviously it would be more of an opportunity for the city to cut their costs,” Diaz said. “For a long time, the city didn’t do it. There is a value to have someone at the city doing it, but does it make sense for (it to be) a separate entity?”

Repp said the city “would consider it” if a proposal was made. There also has been discussion of the city and county having the state’s Department of Business and Economic Development take the lead in all of Allegany County and then maybe work out a cost-share agreement.

Repp said Fiedler has talked with DBED Secretary David Edgerley about such a partnership and the state would “be the logical leader” of such an initiative.

Stakem said consolidating housing and permits, too, for city and county residents to have access to “one-stop shopping” makes sense.

“I think that one is doable,” Stakem said of the permits consolidation.

Stakem said staff of the city and county is working on the details of any proposals. At this point, the effort is only exploratory to see if any consolidation effort is feasible and would be cost-effective. However, Diaz said the effort would not be intended to cut the work force.

“I guess when times get tough, nothing is out of the realm of possibility,” Diaz said. “You have to remember most of the people in county government are classified employees. In government service, it’s not as easy to come in and let people go. However I have seen ... there are times when people get let go.”

Said Repp: “A lot of the discussion has been on the global perspective ... whether consolidation with the state and the county would bring better results and, if so, what those results would be.”

Contact Kevin Spradlin at kspradlin@times-news.com.