MASSENA -- Massena's police chief is calling on Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo to maintain inpatient care at the St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center.

Currier says his department is responding to more than four times as many mental illness incidents as it did in 1997. In a letter written to the governor Currier said St. Lawrence County's suicide rate has tripled since 2007.

The chief said he supports reforming the stat's mental health system, but fears ending inpatient care in Ogdensburg could be devastating to the Village of Massena and the North Country.

"I applaud your efforts to revamp the mental health system in New York State. As a twenty-five year veteran in law enforcement, where nearly twenty of those years have been spent serving my community a chief of police, I can tell you that the amount of time and effort my agency has spent with mentally ill people and mental health incidents has steadily increased," the letter said.

Currier said between 1993 and 1997 Massena averaged 16 .4 mental health incidents per year.

In 2012 that number grew to 84. In the first sixth months of 2013, there have been 46 incidents.

"Our community has faced a 232 percent increase in our type 1 criminal offenses since 1998. We have been dealing with a prescription drug misuse epidemic and currently have a heroin issue on our streets. The reality is that often times a connection can be made between mental health and criminal offenses," Currier said.

Currier also pointed out how remote St. Lawrence County is and the impact it the closure would have on families and patients.

"I can not imagine asking family members of someone requiring inpatient care for mental illness being required to drive to Utica New York or elsewhere to visit and support their loved one while in treatment," he said in the letter.

Currier also pointed out the potential economic repercussions that could follow downsizing the psychiatric center and the impact it could have on the crime rate.

"Anytime I see the loss of jobs, I worry about (how) that will impact our crime rates," he said.

Currier said economic strength helps make communities more safe, while job losses, increases in poverty and economic instability make communities less safe.

"The hard truth about northern New York is, that although we feel we live in (the) most beautiful area of the state, we have the lease amount of resources; less access to services than other (areas) of the state and we have less impact upon decisions that affect our future." he said in the letter. "You can change that governor and I strongly urge you to consider keeping the St. Lawrence Psychiatric facility open. The answer for northern New York is not less mental health services, but more."

Read Currier's entire letter here.