Town, Village Discuss Ambulance District

The Town of Winfield Board met Wednesday night to discuss new business.

Before the meeting, representatives from the Village of West Winfield Board met with representatives from the Town Board to discuss establishing an ambulance district for the Town and Village.

Village of West Winfield Mayor Sandy Smith spoke about her motivation for the project.

She said the revenues over the last four to five years have increased 3.5%, but the operating expenses have increased to the point where the Village is running a deficit every year.

EMS personnel have been cut to part-time in the Village's per diem.

Smith would like to provide 24/7 coverage for the EMS service.

The assessment in the District is about $120 per tax parcel. The current ambulance still needs to be paid off and currently has over 100,000 miles on it.

Purchasing a new ambulance would be a two-year wait before delivery.

Town of Winfield Supervisor Bill Miller suggested leasing an ambulance.

The Village considered the suggestion, however, noted there is still no funding for leasing.

Smith said the cost paying an attorney to write up the paperwork for the District would be about $3,000.

Then it would lead to a joint meeting and public hearing for public opinion.

Keith Watkins asked Smith about the Village's current coverage area.

Smith listed the local areas under coverage in addition to the Town and Village as Plainfield, West Exeter, and Brookfield.

There are some uncertainties with the payments from municipalities.

The Boards discussed gathering the financial expectations of the District and gathering the support of the involved municipalities.

The Board discussed some hypothetical expectations for billing and situations to cover. In response to a question about personnel, Smith said there are

people available for full-time coverage, but there isn't an ability to pay for full service with the system as is.

Miller said he wasn't opposed to moving forward with the idea; however, he wanted more information before providing a commitment from the Town.

Smith said she would contact the attorney for an informational meeting.

Following the ambulance district meeting, the Board met for their regular business meeting. ...