From aiding residents with a variety of tasks, such as changing light bulbs and balancing ladders, to patrolling the streets, the Conneaut Lake Regional Police Department does a little bit of everything.

This sentiment came to light during an informational gathering and citizen participation meeting at the Linesville Borough Office on August 31.

The venue was very close to standing room only as many residents of Linesville lined up in the hallway and others filled the seats in the meeting room.

The meeting was requested by members of Linesville Borough Council in order to take in some details about the services offered by the Conneaut Lake Regional Department, just in case Linesville wishes to join.

No money was mentioned other than a figure thrown out by Councilman Kevin McGrath at one point during the meeting.

Representatives of Linesville Council were Pete Fizer, Susan Lewandowski, Kevin McGrath, Sharon Kobel and Ron Harper.

The Conneaut Lake Police Commission was represented by Sadsbury Township Supervisor Roy Whaley, Conneaut Lake Mayor, Tim Kaider and Police Chief Todd Pfeifer.

Councilwoman Lewandowski led the meeting and set the ground rules which included having anyone who spoke introduce himself or herself. Also, she stated from the get go that there would not be any mention of cost during this particular meeting.

Whaley began by discussing the coverage area and the mission statement of the department, which is to basically protect and serve the community.

Whaley told those in attendance that the region that is covered is that of the Borough of Conneaut Lake as well as all of Sadsbury Township. “Our goal is not to sit in the office but to have exposure out on the road,” he said.

According to Whaley, Pfeifer was brought on board in order to establish an effective police department.

He moved along to addressing some rumors that had been floating about concerning exactly what the Commission had or hadn't done in terms of Linesville's interest in coming on board.

Whaley said no proposals had been submitted and/or reviewed. There had been no yeses or no's given and, currently, they were simply trying to identify the exact needs and desires of Linesville.

After the expectations were worked out, Whaley said the next step would be to formulate them into proposals. They would then be reviewed by the Conneaut Lake board and then, once they are in agreement, it would come back to Linesville.

He ended his portion by saying that he understood that if they decided to go through with this, they would be in somewhat of a hurry but time would be needed in order to follow the rules and regulations set forth by the regional guidelines.

After that, Pfeifer imparted the particulars of what exactly coverage means when it comes to his department.

There are currently two full time and three part time officers. Pfeifer said that they average 22 to 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for the entire year. The average calls per year are approximately 2,500 and there is at least one body per shift.

He held up a fairly thick book which contained all aspects of the mission statement including officer conduct on and off duty.

In terms of what exactly the department does, in addition to neighborly actions that were mentioned in the first sentence above, they also carry out all aspects of law enforcement with the exception of unlocking cars.

The reason for that is because with the new side airbags, a danger could be posed to any officer attempting to help a resident who has been locked out of his or her vehicle. Therefore, Smitty, of Smitty's Towing, is the go to guy for such instances.

Rattling business doors was also on the list as was assisting a senior citizen in firing up a lawnmower.

The department operates four cruisers and they have their own mechanic, which saves them money in the long run.