Patterson FD Close to Reaching New Contract with Town Board
With the Town of Patterson and the Patterson Volunteer Fire Department running out of time to sign a new contract by deadline, both sides are hoping an agreement is reached this week.
During this Wednesday’s town board meeting, the town board will have a vote on whether to approve a new contract resulting in just under $800,000 for the fire department’s fiscal year that starts in April. A vote on the contract has been delayed a couple times by town board members with a lack of communication apparent between the two sides.
Supervisor Rich Williams said the department asked for changes to the contract, which the town board would further discuss this week at its town board meeting and “hopefully come to some resolution.” Williams said the town couldn’t give the department funding without a contract signed by both sides.
The current contract ends April 1.
Williams said he believes the major issue with contract is the financial information the department must give the town board in hopes of greater transparency. Williams said part of the reason the board wants that is because of recent fire department scandals in Putnam County, including with the Mahopac Volunteer Fire Department and the Patterson department. (The ex-treasurer of the Patterson department pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 33 months recently for stealing more than $1 million from the department. All the money stolen has been recovered.)
“We all need to be more diligent in ensuring public funds provided to these private fire companies is spent properly,” Williams said.
Williams said the department wanted funding for certain programs that the town hasn’t proposed in the contract, like money for EMS and a paid maintenance worker. The town board controversially voted last year to move toward with a town controlled EMS program and has been hiring employees and purchasing vehicles to make it a reality.
Patterson fire department president Eleanor Smith said the town attorney and the department attorney have been tasked with putting the final pieces of the contract together. She said the department did get some of the requests it made like how payments are scheduled.
The department though, still doesn’t know what role it’ll play in the town wide EMS and if it’ll have a supplemental part. Currently, all the funding for the department’s EMS has been taken from the proposed funding, Smith noted. She added there has been no dialogue between the town and the fire department over the department’s EMS function.
“We have no idea,” Smith said. “I don’t really know what they want from us. They haven’t been very transparent.”
Smith said if the town board eventually communicates the department would be a secondary EMS option than a second contract would need to be drawn up with additional funding.
Despite the gaps between the two sides, Smith said she believes a contract will be agreed on before the April 1 deadline.
While a contract might be reached, the relationship between the town and fire department might need more time to improve.
Williams said he couldn’t recall the last time the relationship between the town board and fire department officials had reached such a sour point. He traced it back to demanding more accountability from the department when he was elected after past town boards didn’t give the fire department a harder look.
“I’m trying to be more diligent with the taxpayer funding and that has definitely caused some friction,” Williams said. “Not just me, but the town board as a whole.”
Smith said the department has been open ever since the former treasurer stole money from the department coffers and not a result of Williams becoming supervisor. Department officials gave the town board anything they requested in light of that massive embezzlement, she stressed.
“We’re always there to provide services and we’re there with our hearts and souls, and the only reason we volunteer is enthusiasm and dedication toward the public,” Smith said. “That’s why we joined the fire department.”
