The Sloatsburg Village Board of Trustees had a full agenda Tuesday evening, with discussion ranging from old utility poles to an estimate to resurface the Community Field tennis courts to Ramapo Police Department coverage throughout the village.

In the wake of several recent break-ins in the Pine Grove Lakes neighborhood, and rumors of other related activity, the Village Board briefly touched on the topic of village police coverage. Mayor Carl Wright reported that Ramapo police detectives are reviewing the incidents and will keep the village informed related to the department’s investigation.

One Sloatsburg resident attending the meeting asked the board how many officers and or patrol cars were assigned to Sloatsburg by the Ramapo Police Department. The answer: The minimum coverage required for Sloatsburg is one patrol car at all times throughout every 24-hour period. The RPD coverage for Sloatsburg involves three patrol cars over the course of three shifts.

This coverage ranges from Sloatsburg and Hillburn, as well as traffic patrol along Rt. 17. A Ramapo Police officer attending the board meeting said that at any one time only eight patrol cars are assigned to cover the entire Town of Ramapo.

The Ramapo police department has the highest average salary in the state of New York, clocking in at $162,392 per peace officer, which includes benefits and overtime. Ramapo Police Chief Peter Brower was the highest paid municipal employee in New York in the last fiscal year, earning $321,719, according to Empire Center data.

Mayor Wright said that Sloatsburg residents determined in 1990 to dissolve the village police department and opt for Town of Ramapo coverage.

Sloatsburg residents have had periodic complaints about speeding both on Rt. 17, which cuts right through the center of the village, and in the neighborhood of Ballard and Academy near the Sloatsburg Train Station.

The board was responsive to questions related to Ramapo police coverage but has limited leverage with the town to dictate additional coverage.

Local lore has it that Sloatsburg can be a speed trap of sorts during certain times of the month, especially along Seven Lakes Drive, the prime spot in the village to earn plump ticket quotas for lapsed inspection and registration stickers.

Ramapo Police car photo courtesy of Angela Gaul, Newsday.