Valley Falls FD Awarded Bid – by Christine Barton

 

Town of Pittstown-A letter of concern went out to town and village residents in early August, urging them to attend the August 11th Town Council meeting to show support for the Valley Falls Fire Department to continue to provide the fire protection services to the Tomhannock District Residents.

According to the information in the letter “the Valley Falls fire department has been providing services to the Tomhannock District for more than 50 years.”  It kept it’s rate flat on town residents for the five years from 2007 to 2011 and then cut its tax rate by 15% in the past 3 years.” The information in the letter titled “Tomhannock District Residents Tell Pittswtown Town Council: Say YES to Valley Falls Fire Department, was confirmed as accurate by Richard Andrew, Mayor of Valley Falls.

 

Residents Concerned: E. Pittstown FD – by Christine Barton

Pittstown- On March 4th residents from the Town of Pittstown gathered at a public forum to hear information relating to a proposal that the East Pittstown Fire Department will be putting forward in a referendum. The fire department has contracted with Hueber-Breuer Construction company to look into the costs associated with purchasing the now vacant Parker School for the purpose of moving the fire departments operations to that location and selling the existing fire department and vacant lot to offset the cost.

The cost of the proposed referendum is estimated to be up to 2.2 million dollars. “Legally the district cannot spend over 2.2 million on this project,” says Sean Foran, Project Manager, Hueber-Breuer.  The existing firehouse is reported to have several ongoing space and safety issues. A similar referendum failed in the past at a proposed 1.2 or 1.3 million.

Full article in the March 13th issue of the Express.

Melrose FD Recognized for Hurricane Sandy Help – by Christine Barton

Melrose-On December 6th 2013 five members of the Freeport NY Fire Department, Patriot Hose Company No. 4, made the drive to the Melrose Fire Company to formally recognize the department for the assistance they provided during Hurricane Sandy back in October of 2012. The devastation brought about by the storm resulted in widespread damage to the eastern seaboard with extensive damage to many areas of New York and New Jersey. According to Robert Terry, former chief of the Freeport Patriot Hose Co. No.4, about two thirds of company sustained damage to their own homes as a result of the storm, making the ability to respond to emergency calls in the area that much more difficult.

Entire article is in the 12/26 edition of the Express.

City Looking for New Fire Engine – By Harold Wessell

MECHANICVILLE. November 6 ñ The City Council will decide within a couple weeks whether to go in with another fire department to get the best deal on a needed new engine, or incorporate a financed purchase into the 2014 budget.

A resolution before the Council for the November 6 meeting had indicated that "The Mechanicville Fire Department is in desperate need of a new fire truck," and the Village of Hudson Falls is allowing the City of Mechanicville to piggyback with them to get a much better price, the current best deal being offered by Pierce Manufacturing, Inc. for the particular apparatus. The resolution proposed to purchase a fire truck now, using the NYS Revolving Loan at a fixed percent of 2.5% and a bond not to exceed $486,545.00.

Full Story in the Nov. 14th Issue