By JUDY RATTNER
But as of last week, residents may now also request this service when teenage children are left behind in a home.
"We are responding to community-wide concern over the use of homes for underage drinking parties when responsible adults are not at home," said Police Commissioner Jack McKeon.
"This is a voluntary pilot program," the commissioner added. "We are not asking anyone to give up any privacy rights; we want to help families who want their homes to remain free of this kind of activity in their absence.
"If we come across a house party at a listed address, we will proceed exactly as we do now with any such youth gathering," he said.
The pilot program had its genesis in discussions following a presentation in March by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Dave Marcus on the dangers of drugs and alcohol at South Side Middle School.
Trustee Dave Krasula explained, "I've always been interested in this problem. This is sort of how I first got involved in community affairs. When my daughter was in fourth grade, about 15 years ago, I was soccer commissioner for the girls' intramural program. They played on the Hewitt field. The first thing I had to do every Saturday morning was collect all the beer cans and bottles. So since then I've been attuned to this issue. That's when it really hit me square between the eyes. As my daughters have gotten older, I've been aware through school programs and other parents about what's been going on."
Krasula said that earlier this year, the village had a number of incidents that had alcohol-related issues. After the Marcus presentation, he listened to the questions and concerns raised by parents and some of the comments written in by the students there. Frank Quigley, the village administrator, made a short presentation on the village's new social host responsibility law, and then took questions from parents. Many of them wanted to know the implications for them and their children if an adult wasn't home when the kids might be doing something they shouldn't be doing.
Krasula said his friends with kids in high school have expressed concerns that the drinking seems to be starting at an even younger age. And, he said they're afraid to leave their homes if they have a wedding to go to or a business trip on the weekend, they're concerned about what their kids might be doing. Krasula said he got to thinking about what the community could do. And the idea, the phrase that President Reagan used to use, "trust but verify," came to mind.
Talking with Quigley, McKeon and Mayor Mary Bossart, Krasula said he was reminded that police had the Closed House Program, which allows residents to call police and say they're going to be away from their home. That information is logged into the police patrol system, and the patrol car in that area is alerted. The idea was to modify that program to include the opportunity to allow parents to call the police a day or two before they're going to be away and let them know that either their kids will be there with supervision or the house will be empty. And if their kids will be there, that they're not approving any parties or gatherings.
"The one caveat, " said Krasula, "is that this is totally voluntary. We're not giving the cops permission, carte blanche, to search homes. All police procedures and rules have to be followed."
To participate in the program, residents can call (516) 766-1500 a few days before they leave and provide their address, the days they'll be away, and a contact number where they can be reached during their absence.
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