2023 Annual Report-Wintergreen Police
Wintergreen is a very safe place, but we do have crime here. In 2023 we had an increase in thefts (+2). The good news is in 2023 we had decreases in the areas of Domestic and Fraud.
This chart doesn’t include the 222 bear reports we responded to in 2023.
The number of reports of bears increased to 222, up from 77 the year before. The state wildlife specialists tell us that it is difficult to point to specific reasons why we had more issues with our bears in 2023, that even the weather can impact how active the bears might be. That said, we rely on our citizens to review our bear education campaign launched in 2021.
Wintergreen Police were still plenty busy in 2023, as the chart here shows. Assist Other Agencies continued to rise, Welfare checks increased. And this does not count all of the house and business checks, neighborhood patrols, and community contact Wintergreen Police officers made on a daily basis.
296 traffic stops were made, with warnings or summonses issued. Motorists need to be aware of our 25MPH community speed and drive accordingly. This applies equally in Wintergreen's valley and on the mountain areas. The department is committed to enforcing the community speed limit of 25 MPH. We are looking hard at the data our new technology provides us.
There were some improvements on our website this year that make it easy for property owners to sign up for our House Watch program and easier for us to administer.
There is also a new, easy-to-use form for those wanting to look into our WTG Daily Check program that provides a “daily reassurance” to those in the community who live alone and would appreciate a friendly hello each day.
Staffing turnover in dispatch and patrol has been a challenge this year. We currently have three vacancies in our patrol operations, persons interested to fill the vacancies can complete an application and submit to the Chief.
We will, as always, remain committed to the citizens we serve. Every member is striving to deliver the highest quality professional law enforcement service to the community. –Dennis Russell, Chief, Wintergreen Police Department.