Crime & Safety

Sagaponack Mulls Forming Police Department

Village mayor believes an independent police force could save village taxpayers up to $1 million, Newsday reports.

Sagaponack Village is considering patrolling its own streets, setting up a police department of its own and opting out of the Southampton Town Police Department.

According to a Newsday article, the village which pays just over $2 million toward the police department believes it could fund one of its own for as cheap as half the cost – or at most, about $500,000 less than what it currently pays in.

The incorporated village, according to census records, hosts 676 households and this year's village budget assessed taxable land at over $4.2 billion. The wealthy village passed a budget of $789,000 this past year.

Newsday reports that Sagaponack gets an officer devoted to it May through September, but the rest of the year, is part of a larger sector. The lack of coverage, Mayor Donald Louchheim told the paper, leaves the residents' quality of life issues often unattended to.

Southampton Town Police Chief Robert Pearce – who was reportedly invited to next month's village board meeting – did not return a request for comment.

Click here to read the Newsday article (subscription required).


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