ARUNDEL — Residents could vote next year on a proposal to increase police presence in the town.

The town currently contracts with York County Sheriff ’s Office for one designated full-time deputy.

York County Sheriff William King has made the case that the town could use another deputy. In an interview last week, King said Arundel has the second highest amount of police calls out of the nine communities the sheriff ’s office contracts with, and 36 percent of speed-related crashes in the department’s coverage area last year were in Arundel.

The cost of a second deputy in town is estimated to be between about $83,000 and $99,000 annually. Another police cruiser would also have to be purchased for about $33,000.

Town Manager Keith Trefethen said the majority of residents at a public forum last week agreed the town should have more police patrol, whether it be an additional sheriff ’s deputy or shared policing with a nearby community.

The Select Board discussed the issue of police patrol further Monday night, and unanimously agreed, under the suggestion of Chairwoman Velma Jones Hayes, to send the matter to the budget board, and have the budget board make a recommendation on a warrant question for residents to weigh in on at next year’s annual town meeting.

Selectman Jason Nadeau said he thought if the town wanted more police coverage, it should go with a second sheriff ’s deputy, as having police coverage from a neighboring community would cause confusion for emergency dispatch.

Selectman Phil Labbe said he thought the town should contact Biddeford and ask if it would consider patrolling the Arundel side of Route 111, as it already patrolled the Biddeford side of Route 111.

“It’s only 4 more miles,” he said.

Selectman Thomas Danylik said sharing a police officer with another community might cause a turf issue, as one community may not feel like the police officer was fairly shared.

— Staff Writer Liz Gotthelf can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 325 or egotthelf@journaltribune.com.