SOUTH POINT — After more than a month of inactivity the South Point Police Facebook page had an updated post on Wednesday.

The post declared that guidelines to manage the department’s social media page had been determined and that in the near future updates and posts about crime in the village would return. As of the time of this article post had garnered more than 150 likes.

“I think the page can be a big help to the community,” South Point village council member Chris Smith said. “I’m glad to see it back up; I think it’s a good thing. I have a page that I use to get info out about council and other things like that and it has been very helpful.”

Fellow village council member Mary Cogan agreed with Smith’s views on the usefulness of social media and likened the Facebook page to a neighborhood watch group.

“It is a quick and convenient way to connect and spread news to others,” Cogan said. “People like to be informed about their surroundings. I feel that if we know what is going on such as break ins, we can be more cautious and diligent in protecting our personal property and homes. It’s similar in some aspects to a neighborhood watch.”

The page was discontinued back in June after a series of personal and politically charged comments were posted on the page. These personal opinions, along with some accusatory and vulgar comments from visitors forced South Point Mayor Ron West to cease activity on the page until guidelines could be developed.

During Tuesday night’s village council meeting it seemed as if the mayor and police chief Chris Majher were still discussing exactly what those guidelines would be.

“We are still looking into it,” West said during the meeting. “I understand how much of a tool it can be but we are still trying to come up with some guidelines. But, there are ways that the residents can contact the police department and stay informed without Facebook.”

At any rate, Smith believes with the upcoming election and the newly approved police levy on the ballot that the page could be instrumental in getting voters to the polls.

“I think it will help with getting the word out about the levy,” Smith said. “That’s important that we get people out to vote on that. No matter if it passes or fails we need to get a good turnout for the vote.”

As of presstime, the department’s Facebook page was not operational, but it was unclear if that was due to technical issues.