Following a weekend of snow that brought numerous snowmobilers into the village, Superintendent of Schools Patterson Green said he will ask the state police whether the district’s ban on the machines on school property needs better documentation to be enforced.

The confusion followed at least two complaints to authorities on Saturday, but Green and school district Business Manager Anthony DiPace said that except for one alleged incident in the eastern school parking lot, the ban appeared to be working.

“We haven’t heard of any other violation [of the policy],” DiPace said.

Neighbor Michael Whaling said he called state police about 5:45 p.m. Saturday after seeing snowmobilers unloading two sleds from a trailer in the school parking lot, then driving across school property.

Even though a sign erected Jan. 29 by school official prohibits snowmobile traffic by the school, Whaling said, the trooper who came to the scene told him the sign wasn’t sufficient for him to take any action.

State police officials familiar with the issue couldn’t be reached Monday, but Green said he had on Friday faxed the Board of Education’s Jan. 28 resolution banning snowmobiles and the school policy “prohibiting all motorized vehicles, including snowmobiles” to state police in Cobleskill

Green said he sought Monday to clarify what more might be needed.

Although not specifically mentioned in the resolution in the board’s Jan. 28 minutes, or the policy updated Feb. 11, Green said the snowmobilers are still allowed to park on school property “immediately adjacent to Route 20 in front of the school.”

Green and DiPace agreed that snowmobilers were busy traveling along state Route 10, U.S. Route 20 and Chestnut Street in the village, as well as parking in the school area adjacent to Route 20.

They said there were no other tracks spotted on the main part of the school campus or the playground area.

“Daily, we’ve inspected the playground [and] there hasn’t been any [snowmobile] traffic,” Green said Monday.

Whaling, who lives along Route 10 just southeast of the school, said snowmobilers were on school property about 200 yards in back of the school, but DiPace said that is near a state trail where they are still allowed.

Allowing parking along Route 20 in front of the school was “an understanding” at the Jan. 28 board meeting, said DiPace, who is also the district clerk.

“The board wanted to enable people to continue to patronize village businesses,” Green said Monday.

The parking area is between a gas station/convenience store and a tavern restaurant sometimes patronized by snowmobilers.

School board President Karen Cookson was at a conference and could not be reached Monday.

“If our policy isn’t strong enough then we need to do something about that,” DiPace said.

Schoharie County Sheriff John Bates Jr. said deputies were patrolling in the village the past two weekends.

Last weekend were routine patrols, but Bates said the previous weekend “we spent several hours there at the request of village officials … and “nothing of any consequence was observed.”

Bates said the county’s 911 emergency center did get one complaint about snowmobiles about 9:30 p.m. Saturday, but turned it over to state police, as a deputy was not nearby at the time.

Village Mayor Omer Cousineau said Monday that he had not received any complaints about snowmobiles in the village over the weekend.

According to the two-page village law adopted in January 2006, access by snowmobiles to the village is confined to “Corridor 7F.”

In addition, “snowmobiles shall not be operated on any streets of the Village for purposes of entrance and exit.”

Cousineau said that effectively limits snowmobiles to the 7F trail.

Snowmobiles are also prohibited by village law from operating anywhere in the village between the hours of 11 p.m. and 6 a.m.

“After 11 o’clock they should be leaving that tavern, and not hanging around until 3 in the morning,” Cousineau said.

Cousineau said the first meeting of a recently organized committee to discuss snowmobile concerns will be held at 7 p.m. March 13 in the community room of the Sharon Springs Free Library on upper Main Street.

The meeting of the committee, which includes two members each from the Village Board, the school board, and the Sharon Pathfinders snowmobile club, is open to observers, but no public comment will be allowed, Cousineau said.