Ambulance corps also seeks subsidy from town for guaranteed paramedic coverage
A building once used as a salon will address needs more serious than a bad hair day if plans to turn it into a new ambulance substation are successful.
Mohawk Ambulance Service recently purchased the building, formerly Envy Salon, at 176 Freemans Bridge Road in Glenville with plans to use the site for a new substation. The move is meant to help Mohawk improve response times, but town officials are also glad to see another vacant building taken off the map. The for-profit ambulance provider though is asking for a $50,000 subsidy to guarantee a paramedic on every call.
We are excited about Mohawk Ambulance coming to Freeman’s Bridge Road, said Supervisor Christopher Koetzle. `They are planning a major rehab of the facility, so that it can accommodate four ambulances.`
The planned facility will include a four-bay station and living quarters for staff to be onsite at all times. Currently Mohawk responds to more than 2,500 calls in the town, according to the company, which includes calls not requiring transportation. Its headquarters are located on State Street in Schenectady, but the ambulance provider also has stations in Albany and Troy.
`Mohawk Ambulance has been a member of the Glenville community for more than 30 years, and we see this as a continuation of our investment in the community, while at the same time improving our service capabilities,` said Thomas Nardacci, spokesman for Mohawk Ambulance, in a prepared statement.
The subsidy request from Mohawk is separate from its intention to build the station, said Koetzle, and it could be hard to find the money for given the supervisor’s previous comments on an even tighter budget for 2012.
`The world we are in with the tax cap, I don’t think this is possible. I don’t see how we can invest in the community like we used to with the tax cap,` said Koetzle. `We would love to support them any way we can. We have had a lot of conversations around this with Mohawk Ambulance.`
Even if the town can’t provide the $50,000 subsidy, Koetzle said the town is looking at `creative ways` to find the support Mohawk requested without using town funds. Since residents would be footing the bill through taxes, he said, hearing input from them is also important.
`I think one of the things we have to evaluate is if it is a need that is important to our residents,` he said.
Previously the town had paid Mohawk a $30,000 subsidy, which Koetzle believed was stopped about four years ago with the previous administration’s concerns about the town budget.
Nardacci said he believes the request is a fair price for the guaranteed service.
`Our request for a small subsidy in Glenville provides the town with 24/7 paramedic and ambulance service at a fraction of the cost other towns spend,` said Nardacci. `Rotterdam, with a similar population, spends over $500,000 for what we would be providing to Glenville for $50,000.`
Rotterdam has its own paramedics on staff, so the subsidy was never requested by Mohawk during its recent bid to be the ambulance provider for the town. The Town Board chose Rotterdam Emergency Medical Services to be its provider for a two-year period after months of debate.“