BY JEFF CHUDZINSKINorth Country This Week

MASSENA -- The number of village police officers has remained the same for the last two decades but calls for service have nearly doubled, leading to strained resources and upset residents.

Trustees and village residents in attendance at the Sept. 18 board meeting weighed the pros and cons of adding more staff in the face of increased call numbers.

Doug Dilcox, a resident who lives on West Hatfield Road with his wife, spoke during the second public comment period of the Sept. 18 board meeting to voice his frustration over what he described as "a drug house" next door to him.

Dilcox said the property on West Hatfield had vehicles coming and going all week, noting that it appeared larger shipments of drugs were delivered at the end of each week.

He said he and his wife had been patient as police investigated but commented that it had been two years and still no action.

"I understand this is difficult, and it's very time consuming for police to accumulate enough evidence, but us waiting on an outside police agency to be able to make an arrest is having a big effect on the quality of life in our community. Right now. There's a pile of trash that's been sitting on the curb that the village isn't able to pick up. It's been there for two weeks. There's an even bigger pile, two piles of trash in the backyard that have been there all summer. It's a flop house," Dilcox said.

He described people coming and going, saying they "were not even bashful about it."

"I've sat on my front porch and watched the drug exchanges going on in the driveway. Twenty feet away. There's even been curbside service, and they are now using Springs Park, which I don't see our police officers patrolling enough. We've got children down there at the park, and there's drug dealers, drug deals going on while the children are in the park with their parents," he said.

Dilcox said he has reached a point of frustration with the matter and went so far as to invite Olson to sit on the front porch with him so he could witness the situation himself.

Chief Jason Olson reiterated an earlier point from the meeting, saying he was well aware of the situation but commented that with limited resources the department is stretched thin at times.

"I hear every word that you're saying, and I would love nothing more than to be able to have the staff, to be able to do everything that we want to do in this village to clean it up, I would love nothing more than that. It would take an enormous amount of manpower. This is at no fault of the taxpayer, OK, it's where society has gone," Olson said.

In July alone, the Massena Police Department responded to 799 calls for service, issued 20 uniform traffic tickets, conducted 67 traffic stops, carried out six mental health arrests, 18 penal law arrests and handled five motor vehicle accidents, Olson said.

He also said detectives adopted 18 new cases, which adds to their existing workload of cases, served four search warrants, made 10 felony arrests and 11 misdemeanor arrests, all while handling a special Walmart theft detail, along with seizing eight ounces of cocaine and five ounces of methamphetamine.

Olson also pointed towards legislation passed in Albany that has taken power from law enforcement to do their jobs effectively.

Dilcox agreed that legislation has made the job more difficult but commented that if something were not done to fight back, there would not be a village left to fight for.

"Our village is deteriorating to the point where I'm quite frightened," he said.

A retired corrections counselor, Dilcox said he will not be able to sell his house given the current environment in the neighborhood.

"I'm stuck. Who's gonna buy my house with what's going on next to me? There's no shade on it. It's so obvious," he said.

"I'm not going to disagree with you but I can assure you that we're doing everything that we can with the resources. I know, that's not what you want to hear," Olson said.

“I’ve tried to be reserved, but quite honestly, I’m ready to fight back. If you can’t do anything about the dealers, I can certainly harass the customers. I’m to the point where I’m ready to start harassing the customers and do everything I can to chase them out," Dilcox said.

“I never said that we couldn’t do anything. I said that our hands are severely tied. You make your decisions as an adult, and that’s fine. But, I can assure you that this idea that nothing is being done is completely wrong. When I was a detective, I had cases go on for 36 months. Three years. That is ridiculous, and that was over 10 years ago," Olson said.

But Dilcox said he felt that not enough was being done.

"We're not going to have a village left to fight for if this continues," he said.

Former Mayor Jim Hidy then chimed in, saying if residents wanted change it started at the ballot box.

"This is a blue state, OK? And all of the (downstate) legislators are Democrats," Hidy said.  

Mayor Greg Paquin then stepped in, saying he has hired three police officers as mayor.

"I'll add more. Hey, I'll add five more. But when you get the tax bill...I'll add ten more. That's always the problem. That's the point Ken's been alluding to. I can help and really bring this problem to its knees very quickly. But the price tag is going to be astronomical," Paquin said.

"It all starts in Albany," Hidy said.

"Jim, I'm not here...I don't care about, I don't care. I care about this community. If you want to talk about Democrat, Republican, go do it somewhere else. That is just stirring the pot," Paquin rebutted.

“Whatever they’re doing, it ain’t working, and that man just told you that right there,” Hidy said.

"How many officers did you add when you were mayor, Jim?" Paquin asked.

Hidy, who served as major from 2010 to 2014, did not offer a response.

“You didn’t have the issues we have and we’re doing the best we can,” he said.

Trustee Ken McGowan then commented on the matter, saying the number of applicants is down, leading to a nationwide shortage of police officers.

“We’re all short police officers in every community in this county. We have no young people that want to step up and serve their community any more. So, the problems are astronomical in every direction you look at. So, if you have an answer, please let me know," Olson said in agreement.

As the public comment period calmed, Paquin told attendees the village would continue to plug away at the issues.

“It feels like we’re just putting fingers in holes in the dam, but maybe I’ll grow more fingers. I don’t know. We’ll do our best. That’s all I can promise," Paquin said.