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Gray's Traffic Officer's duties?

Anyone who has traveled up Shaker Road during the commute times between 7-8:30 a.m. knows that the traffic backs up from Gray Corner past the Turnpike bridge and impacts the Libby Hill Road intersection. Not only business commuters travel at that time, but the MSAD 15 school busses have to make a turn into Libby Hill Road to deliver High School and Middle School children. High School students who drive, as well as parents, all cramp the intersection at crunch time, trying to get to the school. With the traffic backed up, it sometimes takes a while before a safe opening will allow the school-bound vehicles to make the turn.Below, Monument file photo of Nathan Tsukroff, managing traffic at an accident at Gray Corner, in 2003.

In cooperative effort, the MSAD asked the Town of Gray to hire a traffic officer to work several days per week (at $20 per hour) to manage the traffic at crunch time. The MSAD is prevented by law from hiring a police officer. However, the Town's Public Safety department has volunteering within it a trained traffic officer, Nathan Tsukroff. He manages the traffic at accidents on behalf of the Department. There is no law preventing a municipality from hiring an Officer.

The Town agreed to hire Mr. Tsukroff in 2004. His duties were solely to manage the traffic at that location. The arrangement worked out well enough for the Council to consider appointing him again in 2005. As the appointment date approached this past summer, Nathan sent an e-mail to Manager Mitchell A. Berkowitz, asking about his appointment and duties.

"Mitch," Mr. Tsukroff wrote, "Do you wish to renew my appointment? If so, I would be happy to make myself available if you need to meet with me in person. I'm also open to other duties that you may be considering for someone with that appointment. I can see some benefits to the town in having someone with this appointment, perhaps at a mass-gathering event or at an event with traffic- and crowd-control issues."

At the Council meeting when the appointment was discussed, Mike Salvetti of Mayberry Road inquired as to Mr. Tsukroff's duties and wondered if Mr. Tsukroff would be providing any other activities other than traffic control. Mr. Salvetti was unaware of Mr. Tsukroff's proposal to the Manager to widen the scope of his duties. The Town Council and Manager had recently been unsuccessful in proposing a joint police force with the Town of New Gloucester, where it was voted down at Gray Town meeting. At the July 2005 meeting, Mr. Salvetti asked Manager and Council if hiring the Traffic officer was a back door way to get a police department started.

The Council Chair said he was unaware of any other duties for Mr. Tsukroff other than traffic control at the Libby Hill intersection. The Manager confirmed for Councilor Duda that this information is spelled out in the contract with the MSAD.

However, in Mr. Berkowitz's reply to Mr. Tsukroff prior to the appointment-meeting, Mr. Berkowitz had written, "Hi Nathan: Yes, likely at the July 19 meeting and appreciate your offer. Let's first get the re-appointment thru and then can work on duty assignments."

File Photo, The Monument: Mr. Tsukroff at a 2003 accident, managing traffic.