Walden residents can breathe a sign of relief in the knowledge that they will have ambulance service after the first of the year, should they have the misfortune or the need to dial 911.

The deal struck last week means that Walden will join the newly-formed Town of Montgomery Ambulance District in January 2024, after being the last holdout for most of the year and the last municipality within the township to officially opt in. Beginning in January of 2024, village residents will see a line for ambulance protection on their tax bill. In the interim year of 2023, the village will simply pay a fee of $136,000 for ambulance service.

The deal is a testament to patience and persistence on the part of many who participated in a year’s worth of discussions and negotiations.

Walden Trustees deserve credit for their desire for due diligence, asking many questions and pushing for a consultant during the process. In the end, the delay didn’t cost them anything.

Town of Montgomery Supervisor Brian Maher deserves credit for his patience in leaving the door open for Walden. He said early on that it wouldn’t be viable without Walden’s participation, but was willing to move in that direction when his own board insisted. Maher was also willing to work out a payment schedule with Walden, knowing that the village would not be able to budget anything for ambulance protection until the start of fiscal year 2023-24 on June 1 of next year. He agreed to carry the village through the first five months of 2023.

The Town of Montgomery Ambulance Corps and their trustees deserve credit for crafting a joint proposal with Ambulnz, a private ambulance service that will provide Advanced Life Support (ALS) service for at least the first year of the district.

It has been a challenge for all parties involved, but a long-anticipated goal has been realized. All Town of Montgomery’s residents are better off because if it.