A Voice from the Gallery

Judging from the agenda of the October 5, 2015, and the minutes of the September 28th meeting appearing in the Alcester Union, the city is down one police officer through termination and down one police chief by resignation leaving us with a neophyte police officer to handle enforcement and according to the October 7, 2015, meeting he has been put on notice by one individual and of course, Alcester Bar.

It appears the Alcester city council is entertaining a ‘deal’ with the sheriff’s department for law enforcement coverage. Are ya kidding? I cannot begin to count the number of times the sheriff’s deputies were ‘out-of-position’ when we needed coverage when our officers were unavailable. Think about the areas commanding the greatest population North Sioux (which maintains its own police force and Dakota Dunes (with its own dedicated /deputy and car), now consider where in the food-chain Alcester will stand, with no police force and dependent solely on an out-of-position sheriff’s office.

The council is asking questions about equipment valuations. Please remember when a previous council gave the our ambulance away. Contact the members of the Alcester ambulance who in 1996 struggled to get an ambulance back into the community and asked them how easy it was. Those of us in the 1996 class relied on the good graces of Beresford ambulance for the loan of ambulance equipment to which with to practice so we could test and become EMT’s. It took two years of fund raising and working to purchase a used ambulance and equipment, the good graces of the Alcester Fire Department to house our ambulance just to have an operating ambulance. DO YOU WANT THE SAME SITUATION WITH OUR POLICE DEPARTMENT?

Contact your Alcester city council and ask questions, before it is too late and the council signs away our police department and its equipment. Two representatives are going to talk to the county to propose a deal. Contact the council and get answers, Now!