Date: Fri 06-Feb-1998

Publication: Bee

Author: STEVEB

Quick Words:

Hook-Ladder-Loan-firehouse

Full Text:

Hook And Ladder Seeks Loan From Town For Firehouse Addition

BY STEVE BIGHAM

The Board of Selectmen Monday night agreed to loan the Hook & Ladder Fire

Company $250,000 to be used to pay for an addition to its building.

Firefighter Bill McCarthy said the 5,000-square-foot addition would include

the addition of more bays for trucks. He said the department would pay the

money back to the town over just a few years. Ironically, the building is

owned by the town, but the decision to expand the building was the fire

department's.

"This is the fourth different board (of selectmen) we've gone before, but

we've never been able to get the thing through," Mr McCarthy said.

Selectman Bill Brimmer said the loan may be a bit premature since his

Municipal Space Needs Committee has not completed its search for a future home

for some town offices. The firehouse, located conveniently behind Edmond Town

Hall, is still an option, with the possibility of the town building a new

station for Hook & Ladder elsewhere. The selectmen agreed to give out the

money only after the town makes up its mind on the building's future.

Now the selectmen must determine how to fund the fire department's project.

Though it is just a loan, the money will not be paid back within a year so it

will be listed as an expense in the budget without an offsetting revenue.

Mr Brimmer noted that "$250,000 is a lot of money to put into the budget

considering we have a significant increase as it is."

First Selectman Herb Rosenthal was hoping the money could be kept out of the

budget and sent on to the Legislative Council separately since it was not a

typical budget item. However, Finance Director Ben Spragg reminded the first

selectman that the council wants everything put into the budget, then once the

council members have the budget in hand, they can decide how to finance an

item, Mr Spragg said.