Holley resident wants Police Department to be 24/7

Posted 11 April 2015 at 12:00 am

Editor:

Do people’s lives and property matter in the Village of Holley, NY?

It’s election time coming up in June. Village of Holley has two positions open on the Village Board.

Village budgets for DPW, village electric, Fire Department, Police Department are also being done.

But how many of the village residents know that one village trustee, Skip Carpenter, is pushing to cut the budget to the Holley Police Department, cut down on daytime patrols, and also stop overnight patrols? With a goal to eliminate the entire police department within the year altogether.

Yes, at first I thought this was just a rumor. But after doing several checking around I found out this is NOT a rumor. This is facts.

It takes on a average response time of 2 to 5 minutes for Holley Police to show up to your house after calling 911. If Holley PD needs back up, it takes an average of 15 to 20 minutes for Sheriff’s Department or NY State Police to respond – possibly longer based on were they are responding from. They could be coming from Albion, Medina, or Lyndonville.

On an average night, the Sheriff’s Department has two patrol units on, NY State Police has one patrol on. These three patrols cover all of Orleans County, handling calls. From drunk driving, accidents, shootings, domestic disputes, fights, break-ins, drug trafficking, etc. The list goes on.

Village of Holley handles over 300 calls a month. This does not include speeding tickets. That is 10 plus calls made to 911 a day on average. Response time is 2 to 5 minutes. If we cut the hours, and do away with the police department. Do you feel if you are being held at gun point, or a robber is in your house that you can wait 15 to 20 minutes for someone to show up, and that is based on if a car is available at the time and not on another call?

Is Skip Carpenter more worried about a budget, that village residents and property is not worth protecting. Look around people, the Village of Holley has one of the highest drug trafficking areas in the county because Village Board members like Skip Carpenter don’t want extra patrols on. He would rather cut the budget and cut patrols before putting your life and property first.

We need people in the Village Board that care about the safety of this village and NOT their own pocket.

If you have the time, I encourage you to run against Skip Carpenter for Village Trustee and let’s worry about the safety of this community.

No one likes budgets. But I would rather have a suitable budget and 24/7 police protection than no budget and no protection because a Village Board member doesn’t want a Police Department.

Steven Gergely
Village of Holley