Fire board says it will abide by truck vote
WEST HURLEY, N.Y. » Residents of the West Hurley Fire District have elicited a promise from commissioners that the result of a planned June 5 referendum for the purchase of two fire trucks will be honored.
The unanimous pledge of fire commissioners to honor the vote result was made during a public hearing Monday.
Commissioners acknowledged to an audience of about 100 that setting a vote initially was done in error based on the advice of an attorney.
“I was misled by our lawyer,” said Board of Fire Commissioners Chairman Michael VanValkenburg. “We didn’t even have to go to a vote . ... We fired our lawyer since then because he gave us miscommunications.”
Commissioners said the board could have voted to make the purchase without voter approval because the trucks cost less than $100,000 each. However, they noted if the decision involved use of a reserve fund, it could be overturned by a petition signed by 25 percent of property owners objecting to the purchases.
Commissioners initially planned an April 24 public vote on whether to pay $94,000 for a used 2000 Quint engine ladder truck and $51,000 for a used 2005 LaFrance pumper tanker. There also would have been a proposition on selling a 2001 Freightliner tanker, which fire district officials estimated would bring $107,500.
The vote date was changed to June 5 after residents packed the fire station for an April 16 meeting of commissioners to question the need for the truck purchases.
But it was not until after a recent meeting that one resident allegedly overheard fire officials saying the board could move ahead with the purchases regardless of the vote outcome.
“He said, ‘I don’t care how they vote, we’re getting it and that’s all there is to it,’” said resident Joan Pollard.
Commissioner Frank Faluotico was the first board member to say during the meeting Monday that he would vote against the purchases if the public referendum is defeated.
It took about another 45 minutes before the other four commissioners also agreed to honor the public vote.
Residents questioned the necessity of a ladder truck
in a district that does not have tall buildings. They also suggested the purchase of any new vehicle should be based heavily on its capacity to haul water to fires.
Several people grew frustrated with information used by commissioners to justify purchasing a ladder truck. Included was a statement that there was growth in district, which was met by comments that new construction still has building code limits regarding heights and actually better demonstrates the need for additional water capacity rather than vertical reach.
“We’re growing exponentially,
but we’re minimizing the amount of water that we can get to a house,” resident Lyn Fox said. “Where is the logic in that?”
Resident Don Doyle was among the speakers who said information about the need for a ladder truck was not accurate.
“We were told at the last meeting that there are 15 commercial buildings in the West Hurley District and that, if a call goes in from one of those facilities, it is required that a ladder truck be dispatched,” he said. “I contacted 911 . ... They told me that is absolutely false. Mutual aid has to be called, but it is up to the chief or the officer in charge on site to determine whether a ladder truck is needed.”