I read with disappointment the article in your paper about the Owasco Town Board meeting Thursday evening, Nov. 13.
Perhaps the residents who objected to the item in the 2009 budget for a full-time police officer were misinformed by Councilman Wagner.
They objected to a $115,000 position for a full-time police officer. They were told that this officer would be hired solely to curb juvenile delinquency.
Actually, if that is all the information I had, I definitely would object too.
However, that is not the case; we really need a full-time police officer to help with our ever-growing garbage truck traffic through town.
Do the residents in the Town of Owasco think that $115,000 is too much money for the protection of our families and our drinking water?
John Klink, town supervisor, and I have been working with our elected state officials and the DOT to provide new regulations that would control the number of trucks ripping up our roads and threatening the safety of our residents and our water supply.
We are very close to seeing new regulations that would have stiff fines and jail sentences for those trucks that will be determined to be illegal on these roads.
One of the problems that will exist even after these new regulations are issued is, enforcement. We do not have any effective means of monitoring the roads; the present contract with the sheriff's department is not effective. The $25,000 a year that we pay the sheriff's department to patrol our roads is not working. They decide when and where to patrol and the town has no control over what they do. It has not helped and perhaps Councilman Wagner should look at that item.
The village of Skaneateles has a police force and a van that is equipped to police the trucks traveling through their town. This effort is good for Skaneateles, but it sends the trucks our way and the only thing we can do is to have some enforcement of our own. Other towns and villages will be looking at enforcement of the new regulations and will probably be more realistic about the situation and find ways to provide police protection in their towns.
I hope that this budget item will be looked at again and re-introduced and that the people in Owasco who are so adversely affected by these big, smelly garbage trucks will speak up and support the two board members who voted yes for the police officer.
Barbara Ann Clary
Owasco
They objected to a $115,000 position for a full-time police officer. They were told that this officer would be hired solely to curb juvenile delinquency.
Actually, if that is all the information I had, I definitely would object too.
However, that is not the case; we really need a full-time police officer to help with our ever-growing garbage truck traffic through town.
Do the residents in the Town of Owasco think that $115,000 is too much money for the protection of our families and our drinking water?
John Klink, town supervisor, and I have been working with our elected state officials and the DOT to provide new regulations that would control the number of trucks ripping up our roads and threatening the safety of our residents and our water supply.
We are very close to seeing new regulations that would have stiff fines and jail sentences for those trucks that will be determined to be illegal on these roads.
One of the problems that will exist even after these new regulations are issued is, enforcement. We do not have any effective means of monitoring the roads; the present contract with the sheriff's department is not effective. The $25,000 a year that we pay the sheriff's department to patrol our roads is not working. They decide when and where to patrol and the town has no control over what they do. It has not helped and perhaps Councilman Wagner should look at that item.
The village of Skaneateles has a police force and a van that is equipped to police the trucks traveling through their town. This effort is good for Skaneateles, but it sends the trucks our way and the only thing we can do is to have some enforcement of our own. Other towns and villages will be looking at enforcement of the new regulations and will probably be more realistic about the situation and find ways to provide police protection in their towns.
I hope that this budget item will be looked at again and re-introduced and that the people in Owasco who are so adversely affected by these big, smelly garbage trucks will speak up and support the two board members who voted yes for the police officer.
Barbara Ann Clary
Owasco
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quest wrote on Nov 23, 2008 2:14 PM:
It was the $115K that most, if not all the people objected to, not the one microcosm of a duty of the policeman.
Next point, hasn't the Gov. taken care of the truck issue?
3rd point We get coverage and patrolling from the Sheriffs Department already, the $25k is extra coverage!!!! "