By Joshua Walther
SCHOHARIE - During the Schoharie Village Board meeting on Tuesday, Middleburgh Mayor Timothy Knight spoke to the members about the possibility of contracting with their police department.
Mayor Knight explained that he has had a recent uptick in public concern over speeding and other traffic violations within his village.
He cited drivers regularly going over the posted speed limit as the main point, but he also noted that there are several parking and crosswalk issues that pedestrians must contend with.
To remedy these problems, Mayor Knight suggested that Middleburgh and Schoharie could collaborate, as Middleburgh has no dedicated police force of its own.
“The county sheriff is great,” he said to the Board, “but they have to serve the entire county. And with Cobleskill’s situation in recent years, I just wanted to come to you for information.”
Although the Board was amenable to the idea, Mayor Colleen Henry stated that the issue is out of their hands until they can speak with their officer in charge, Jason Temple, who was unavailable at the time of the meeting.
She said that Mr. Temple knew the pros and cons of contracting with another village and that he had concerns about insurance, which could be “slippery.”
Deputy Mayor Peter Johnson also questioned why Middleburgh would contract with Schoharie instead of hiring their own part-time officers, but Mayor Knight replied that it wasn’t feasible with their current budget.
He also stated that this was not a “firm decision” by Middleburgh’s own village board, and that they were merely in talks over an idea that was still forming.
With his piece said, Mayor Henry concluded that she and the Board would speak with Mr. Temple as soon as possible, and that Schoharie would be in touch with Middleburgh if a contracting deal could be made.
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