FeedsPlymouth chief calls it quits
Click image to enlarge
Plymouth Police Chief Wayne Carroll is exchanging his badge for a fishing rod and a short-sleeved shirt. He's retiring after more than 30 years with the Plymouth department and heading south.Weathermen may be forecasting snow for the future, but Wayne Carroll is packing his summer clothes.
The Florida native and long-time member of the City of Plymouth Police Department has wrapped up a career that lasted more than 30 years and is heading for warmer climes.
“I can’t believe we’re talking about my retirement,” said Carroll, who has spent the last nine years as the police chief in Plymouth. “I feel like I just got here. It’s a blur.”
That could be, Carroll said, because it was a job he enjoyed in a place he loved-when it was warm out.
“I’ve been very fortunate. This is a great place to work; it’s a great atmosphere,” he said. “It’s the perfect mix.”
Carroll came to the department in 1978, when the city virtually stood alone as a downtown in western Wayne County. He was 28 at the time, fresh from a four-year term as a special investigator in the military. He grew up in Florida, but his wife’s family brought him to Michigan.
Back then, the city patrolled Plymouth Township, too, and Carroll said he remembers patrolling roads surrounded by cornfields at a time when it took several hours to look up the record of a potential criminal.
Now, advancements in technology have dropped that to mere minutes and Carroll suspects there are more innovations on the way.
“There are things out there that we haven’t even thought of,” he said.
He took on the role of chief in 2000, when the political environment in the town scared off plenty of police chief-and city manager-candidates.
Carroll, a lieutenant at the time, said it wasn’t his first choice, either.
“I didn’t want to be chief,” he said. “I was happy in the detective bureau.
“It’s not something you think about,” he added. “It’s just one of those things that is a natural progression.”
Caroll and City Manager Paul Sincock, who took his position at roughly the same time, provided some much-needed stability to the city and they haven’t looked back.
“He definitely brought a sense of pride and integrity to the police department,” said Sincock of Carroll. “He made a significant impact on that organization that will be felt for years to come.”
Alan Cox will take over the role. Last week, he had already moved behind Carroll’s desk, forcing the older man to set up his computer on a table in the corner.
Carroll said he was looking forward to his leisurely years and it was a good time to hang up his badge.
“I’m still in good health,” he said. “After 32 years it’s time. You have to let someone else do it.”
He said he doesn’t have any solid plans for retirement, other than relaxing and fishing-and returning to Florida.
“I just don’t want to see snow anymore,” he said. “I’m tired of it.”
He leaned forward. “I don’t like snow,” he emphasized.
