by Bea Peterson
During the Public Hearing on elimination of Village Dispatch service Mayor Matt Monahan told the more than 50 village residents in attendance that the anticipated budget for Hoosick Falls for 2010 is $1,788,482 and 12 percent of that budget, or a projected $147,974 is for Dispatch. Many of those attending the meeting at the Senior Center on Thursday, February 4, were Hoosick Falls volunteer firefighters and Hoosick volunteer Rescue Squad personnel. Bill Gaillard, President of the Town of Hoosick Rescue Squad was first to address the Village Board and those gathered and said Dispatch has been the primary source for receiving calls for 80 years. He pointed out that for years Rensselaer County has wanted to upgrade its 911 service to cover the entire populace.
“There are problems with the system,” said Gaillard. To make the system work 11 towers are needed and only six are in place. It is his understanding that the tower on LeBarron Road is controlled with manual switching. He said that on Thursday night there was a call to Saratoga Street and there was no radio reception. He said in case of an emergency the time clock is ticking, “and we sit here and don’t get the call.” Many people don’t have 911 numbers on their houses or mailboxes, he said. The local dispatch knows almost everyone and can be relied on to send the ambulance to the right house.
“Terrorism scares me,” he said. “If something goes wrong North of Route 2, Grafton and Petersburgh depend on the LeBarron tower. We are the primary for those people.”
When the Municipal Building was rebuilt in 1984 the Rescue Squad paid $7,000 to put a tower on the building. “It is worth much more today,” Gaillard said. The County system is not 100 percent reliable. Applause followed his presentation.
Later in the meeting Jim Monahan, a former Rensselaer County Legislator, said in 2001/2002 he was assistant chairman of the County Safety Committee and he remembers when those towers were to be installed. “Nassau received the first tower, and Hoosick received the second tower.” That was eight or nine years ago and the problem is ongoing, he said. “There are 55 very bright people in this room. You should form a committee and think out of the box to solve this.” He told the Board, “You should be proud of yourselves for addressing the problem.”
Rescue Squad Member Ronald Sampath reiterated what Gaillard said about trouble with the radios. “Oftentimes a Troy message doesn’t get to us,” he said. “Local dispatchers, who know every street and road offer a personal touch that cannot be underestimated.” He acknowledged the Board has a myriad of problems, but, he urged, “some other way must be found.”
Hoosick Falls Fire Chief Ted Senecal said, “A couple of years ago all we got [from the County] was a pager call. That was it. Town Fire Chiefs screamed and hollered, and we finally got a better radio system. The County told us they don’t have money for more towers. But if the tower goes down, we won’t get a call. We will have no means to know of an emergency. The County is well aware our radio system doesn’t work everywhere in Town.” He concluded by saying that the State puts more and more mandates on small Fire Departments to have upgraded equipment and it’s all going back to taxpayers. “With Dispatch, every person in Town is an end user and residents need help.”
Dispatcher and North Hoosick Fire Chief Alan Bornt said, “You want people to shop locally, and yet you are eliminating local jobs. Dispatch provides a vital service. I get a call, and I get them to your house to take care of the problem.” He urged the Town to get involved. “Don’t be too quick to eliminate Dispatch. Form a committee to save this community service because once it’s gone, it’s gone. He looked to the County dispatchers that were at the meeting and said, “You are doing a great job down there.” He said his Fire Department has waited two and a half hours for police to come when there is an auto accident in Town. “My Fire Department is serviced by Hoosick Falls dispatch. “We are all volunteers, and we all have other jobs.”
Other Side Of The Coin
Mark Surdam, a Village resident and Town Councilman, said he has been a Village Police officer and he has done some dispatching. “What got my attention,” he said, “was talk of a 17 percent tax increase or a nine percent increase. Taxes have become an issue that has to be addressed.” He said Dispatch is primarily for the Police Department, and we can’t do away with it.
Mayor Monahan clarified the increase. “Last year there was a 7.8 percent budget increase. This year we are expecting cuts in funding, and we anticipate a 10 to 12 percent increase. We won’t know until the April [Board] meeting.
There were suggestions that the cost of Dispatch be contracted with Fire Departments. Again, the cost of increased Fire Department budgets would fall back to taxpayers. It was pointed out that the cost for County Dispatch is an expense on everyone’s phone bill.
The Mayor pointed out that one third of all emergency calls are for Town residents, yet the Town only pays $5,000 towards Dispatch. One third of the Dispatch budget is $44,436. As this meeting was on Thursday, he said he was going to address the Hoosick Town Board when they met on Monday.
Surdam thought there might be other ways to resolve this.
Jim Martinez, President of the Hoosick Federal Credit Union, said the Credit Union has had its biggest year since 1953 with more than three million dollars in loans. “We made 250 loans to people who needed help,” he said. “There were another 250 to 300 loan requests we could not do. That’s five to six hundred people who needed financial help. We’ve seen a dramatic increase in our financial counseling,” he added. “It’s been a great year for the Credit Union, but people are hurting. Who’s going to fix it? Talk to the County about towers. The problem in this country is we’re spending more than we have and we’re buying what we can’t afford. Can we afford Dispatch,” he asked. “What’s more important? Dispatch or a roof over my head?”
Fran Downing said he felt “ripped” off by Village taxes. “It’s not right,” he said. “People in business are suffering.” He said he is all for cutting taxes and resents Dispatch will go, but residents have to pay for new water and sewer plants. Both of those projects, however, were state mandated. Downing said, “People are borrowing money to pay their taxes. Other people are moving out because they can’t pay their taxes.”
Hoosick Falls Fire Commissioner Tom McMartin told the Board he was glad he was not in their shoes. He said he could see both sides of the issue. He urged the Board to get together with the Town and with Village and Town residents to see if services could be consolidated. “Our volunteer emergency medical services does not cost near as much as a private company would cost,” he said. “I urge you to work out a time table with the Town and really study where we can get the most value for my tax dollar. The need for our services has not diminished.”
Former Village Mayor Don Bogardus told the Board, “You people do what you think is best. You do what the majority wants you to do. You are not going to please everyone.” He recommended cuts and changes in the Police Department. He added that some people in the Village were earning $7 or $8 an hour. “There’s no tax base to pay people more,” he said.
Board Member John Hickey told the assembly that it is difficult to keep young people in the community “because we have nothing here to offer them.” He said the community has to find a way to keep people here and draw more people in. “If we want to keep services we have got to get people in the Town and Village together to find the money. People are really struggling.”
At the conclusion of the Public Hearing the Mayor said he had talked with many people to solve this problem, including the Council of Mayors. “I have learned more things about radios and dispatching in the last month,” he said. “We’re going to initiate some radio testing. We’re going to look at what can be done. We have a lot of different options.”
“By 2012 taxes could increase 35 percent. We have to see where we can save the most money. We’ve got the ball rolling. This is just one meeting. It isn’t going to be the last meeting. He said he was impressed by the turnout and the composure of the attendants. He said everybody spoke very well. “Our Dispatch is top of the line. They know everyone, and that’s a luxury.”
Finding Volunteers
Mayor Monahan would like to find people to serve on a committee for Dispatch. He said the Village is fortunate to have ambulance and fire department volunteers. He said in the March Village election all the candidates are running unopposed because no one is willing to run. “We can’t fill seats on our ZBA or Planning Board.” He wants to form a committee to establish equitable water rates and, again, he can’t find volunteers.
Meeting March 3
The Mayor said this first meeting was for Village residents. “We don’t want to leave anyone out.” The next meeting will be open to Village and Town residents. “No one here wants to sign something that will cost someone their life or their home,” he said.
The next meeting will be Wednesday, March 3, at 6 pm at the Senior Center. The Mayor encouraged everyone to come back to the meeting, which will be open to everybody. He wants to address this problem with the County, he said, and “put them on the hot seat.” He told the assembly that his phone is always on and people are welcome to call him any time.
Of one thing the Mayor is 100 percent positive, Dispatch will not remain in its present state.