Cattaraugus Police Department Secures New Suv

New York State Senator Catharine Young presents Cattaraugus Police Chief Donald Veith with the keys to a 2008 Dodge Durango police car. Looking on is Cattaraugus Village Board Trustee Patrick McGlew, police liaison officer. The car was purchased with a $22,000 Member Initiative Grant, applied for by Veith, facilitated by the senator and administered by the Division of Criminal Justice Services.

SENATOR YOUNG HELPS WITH POLICE ASSIST

By Arvilla Pritchard

CATTARAUGUS - New York State Senator Catharine Young formally presented the keys for the village's new police car to Cattaraugus Police Chief Donald Veith during a brief ceremony held Friday, August 22, in Railroad Park. Also present was village trustee, Patrick McGlew, who serves as the board's liaison with the police department.

Said Young, "We need to support our small police departments in our small towns. They often don't have the resources that larger places do."

As they shook hands, Chief Veith responded, "Senator Young, I thank you from the bottom of my heart."

Senator Young was instrumental in helping Chief Veith obtain a $22,000 Member Initiative Grant, for which he applied earlier this year, when the village found itself unable to come up with funding for a new police vehicle. The grant was specifically designated, "for the Cattaraugus Police Department for the purchase of a police car."

Trustee McGlew spoke on behalf of the Village of Cattaraugus, adding the board's thanks to those of Veith. "This is a tremendous help to the village," he told the senator.

The new car, a 2008 Dodge Durango with all-wheel drive, replaces the department's old 2003 Chevrolet Impala which had outlived its usefulness. Veith believes that the new vehicle is much better equipped to navigate the hilly, and often snowy, streets of Cattaraugus.

Of course, Chief Veith believes the new car's capabilities would be even more useful should the local police force's jurisdiction someday be extended beyond the village limits to encompass the Town of New Albion. He has never made it a secret that he would like to see that happen.

"I have often told the mayor (David Rivet)," he said, "that when I fly my plane over the area, I don't see a village and a township; I see a community, tucked in the hills that I have been privileged to have grown up in…a whole community that can benefit from a town-wide police department."

"Such a move would more fully utilize our force and enable us to better assist the sheriff's department during the hours we're in service," he said.

The chief believes that in this era of sky-rocketing expenses and increased emphasis on shared services among municipalities, the time is ripe for his vision to come true.