ENTERPRISE — Mayor Steve Lear says a forthcoming review of the Enterprise Police Department will be led by a police chief from Pendleton.

Acting on a referral through the Oregon Association Chiefs of Police, Lear says, the City of Enterprise contacted Pendleton Police Chief Stuart Roberts, who will head a team of two or more people evaluating internal functioning of the EPD.

On March 17, the Enterprise City Council held a special meeting to accept the resignation of police chief Wes Kilgore, who had held the post since March 2002. Along with formally acknowledging Kilgore’s decision to leave, the council voted to authorize a departmental review.

According to Lear, the evaluation will include “a general overview of the department as a whole” and is basically a free service the police chiefs association is providing the city, an association member. “As it stands now, there is no charge for this,” the mayor said.

Lear said the review would begin sometime within the next two weeks and be completed by month’s end. The city council’s police committee — which includes Lear and councilors Jenni Word and Larry Christman — will then pore through the results and thereafter make a recommendation to the full city council, which is scheduled to meet on Monday, May 11.

Ostensibly on city officials’ plate is a choice of either keeping or dissolving the city police department.

Lear has been tamping down expectations for such a major change, however. He said it’s not unusual to evaluate a department “when you make these transitions.”

The mayor also indicated that Pendleton chief Roberts is well qualified for leading the exercise. “He has a lot of experience doing these,” Lear said.