The town’s Jaws of Life extraction tool is permanently out of service and the Fire Department is looking to purchase a replacement unit.
Two select board members struggled with a decision about whether to purchase the piece of equipment with remaining funds from this year’s budget, from capital reserve funds, or to present it as a warrant article during Town Meeting.
The unit would cost $31,625 in 2016 and $33,625 in 2017, a $2,000 increase due, in part, to inflation costs and holding the unit for more than 30 days until Town Meeting.
“I’m leery about spending this much money without voter consent,” said Chair Margaret Charig Bliss during a regular meeting on Tuesday evening.
The piece of equipment is essential, argued board member Robert Marshall. He said the funds should be pulled from end-of-the-year money.
“We’ve been borrowing [the Jaws of Life] since September 2015,” Marshall said. “It’s like running a fire truck down the road with with a borrowed hose. It just makes no sense.”
He said he thinks the public would support the purchase if it understood how important it is for the department.
Board member Stephen Atherton Jr. was not present at Tuesday’s meeting. During a Dec. 6 meeting, Atherton supported the idea of purchasing the equipment with end-of-year money. Charig Bliss and Marshall decided to defer the decision until its next meeting.
The board approved the purchase of a baler for the town’s recycling center.
The piece of equipment is used and will cost about $5,000, money that will be taken from within the department’s budget.
Town Administrator Aaron Patt said the baler will reduce the amount of on-site handling, which is costly and time consuming.
The board also agreed to have a survey conducted at the recycling center in order to gather public opinion about increasing the number of hours it’s opened.
Select board members will reconvene on Thursday, Dec. 29, at 5:30 p.m.
Abby Kessler can be reached at 924-7172, ext. 234 or akessler@ledgertranscript.com.