Trending
Outgoing Hanover town Supervisor Todd Johnson is getting a bumpy farewell in his final weeks in the position. During a meeting in early November, Johnson admitted his displeasure with the lack of a policing contract for the town and village of Silver Creek with the Chautauqua County Sheriff's Department.
In the aftermath of his comments, it appears he chose the wrong battle. Sheriff Jim Quattrone, who is highly respected, did not appreciate the supervisor's statements.
Quattrone went on to note that the lack of an agreement is nothing new. It usually has gone down to the wire - and it has nothing to do with the village or his department.
"This lack of signing the contract in a timely manner has been the norm since I have been in office," Quattrone wrote. "Last year, the town signed the contract for 2023 on December 12, 2022 - which seems to be the norm. The Sheriff's Office requested at the end of 2022 that we begin talks for the 2024 agreement that seemed to go unanswered. It appears that your approach is to approve your budget based on what you expect to pay for services and then attempt to force that decision upon the Chautauqua County Sheriff's Office and the county as an entirety. We cannot expect the other towns, villages and cities to take on the burden of providing enhanced police protection in the town of Hanover."
Johnson, who sought the position of town clerk, has a history of not returning phone calls. That was an issue brought up in the recent campaign.
Hanover will be turning the page in January. Maybe future policing deals will be completed months before the beginning of the new year.