Defreestville Fire Protection District to Consolidate with North Greenbush Fire District

ALBANY, NY (12/17/2009)(readMedia)-- New York's Secretary of State Lorraine Cortes-Vazquez announced that effective January 1, 2010, fire protection services in the Town of North Greenbush will be consolidated under North Greenbush Fire District # 1 as the District expands to encompass the entire town. The expansion of the District was extensively researched and studied by the District, the fire departments and the Town of North Greenbush under a grant from the New York State Department of State.

"This Fire District expansion is an excellent example of how two separate entities can join together while continuing to provide excellent service and providing taxpayer savings" said New York Secretary of State Lorraine Cortes-Vazquez. "In these difficult times of budget deficits, the ability of a municipality to minimize a tax rate increase or to provide a tax rate decrease while maintaining service levels speaks volumes about the dedication of a governing board. This study is also indicative of the progress that can be made and the opportunities that are available when municipalities work together to solve problems in their communities."

Due to annual cost increases, projected savings can be difficult to determine; however, residents of the original North Greenbush Fire District #1 may see only a 2% increase in their fire protection tax rate this year, instead of the originally projected 3% increase. The residents of the original DeFreestville Fire Protection District may see up to a 40% reduction in their fire protection tax rate, or $148 on a property assessed at $100,000. This consolidation provides a uniform Fire District tax rate for all properties throughout the entire town of North Greenbush. In addition, all volunteers in the two departments will now receive the same benefits from the Length of Service Award Program (LOSAP).

"The expansion of the Fire District will improve the organization, the efficiency and utilization of resources for fire protection services," said Daniel Garab, Chairman of the Board of Fire Commissioners. "The DeFreestville Fire Department will become a fire department within the expanded Fire District, just as the Wynantskill Fire Department currently is."

"This change will fortify and enhance the teamwork that WFD and DFD have had for many, many years," said Wynantskill Fire Chief James Schirmer. "From both a financial and a fire fighting standpoint, this change makes perfect sense, and we welcome it," said DeFreestville Fire Chief Raymond Swart.

Fire protection services have been provided for decades in only part of the Town by North Greenbush Fire District #1 and its Wynantskill Fire Department. In other parts of the Town, fire protection has been provided by the DeFreestville Fire Department, Inc. through the DeFreestville Fire Protection District and through contracts between the DFD and North Greenbush Fire District # 1 for portions of the District that are in proximity to the DFD fire station. Chairman Garab said recent actions by the Town, the Fire District and the DFD will result in the dissolution of the DeFreestville Fire Protection District and have cleared the way to create a town-wide Fire District with two fire Departments.

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