MONTICELLO — The Village Board of Trustees agreed, in principle, to hire two new village police officers to replenish the depleted force that's been down four officers for several years now.

The unanimous board vote will see the hires take place within 30 days of the October 7 meeting.

“This force has not been fully staffed since I came on,” offered Monticello Police Chief Robert Mir. “According to former Chief [Doug] Solomon, this police force has been down[in numbers] since the early [19]80s.”

Though Village Mayor Gordon Jenkins complained that “Community policing does not exist in this village...,” the mayor, whose strained relationship with the village police force has been well documented, did not interfere in any way with the measure.

Jenkins further took issue with the fact that just two of the current 20 Monticello police officers live in the village, saying, “When people [law enforcement] don't live in your community, they get their paycheck and they just leave... they don't really give 100 percent,” he opined. “Maybe [they give] 90 percent but we need law enforcement at 100 percent...”

Both new hires, which have yet to be named, will be culled from other local law enforcement agencies, and should help the depleted village force near full capacity; 24. This method of hiring within the county is referred to as “lateral transfer.”

“I'm just glad to see we're moving in the right direction here as far as providing this police department with the proper resources it needs to function,” said Village Trustee and former Monticello police Chief Doug Solomon.

Not much is known as far as the new hires, but one thing is for sure - both will be working the night shift, an area Monticello law enforcement officials have intimated has been “especially shorthanded,” said Mir,.

“Twenty-four [officers] would give us a full compliment of officers,” added Mir. “That's what we were budgeted for in the 2012-13 year... for the 2013-14 year we only budgeted for 22 [officers].”

Continued Mir, “The [two] positions have been vacant for well over two years now and … the monies for salaries and benefits were budgeted for this entire time.”

According to Mir, and as per an agreement between the Village Board and the Monticello Police Benevolent Association (PBA), next year the board will budget for “a full compliment of 24 officers.”

Several calls to Jenkins for comment were unreturned as this story went to press.