At some point between now and the end of the year, Walden trustees will need to make a decision about the future of ambulance service in the village. They may not be closer to resolving the issue, but they are still discussing the topic. At last week’s village board meeting, they spent more than 30 minutes debating whether the mayor should share his notes on the subject.
The village is not part of the recently-created ambulance district that will serve the unincorporated portion of the town, as well as the villages of Maybrook and Montgomery. While the other municipalities voted to opt in to the taxing district that will go into effect on January 1, 2023, Walden officials declined, citing too many unanswered questions and the need for more due diligence in determining a route to ambulance service. The option to opt in, however, remains on the table.
Mayor John Ramos recently attended a meeting with town officials to discuss the district and the pending decision to accept a request for proposals (RFP) from a potential service provider. Walden trustees spent a good part of last week’s meeting trying to convince Mayor Ramos to shares his notes from the meeting.
At the meeting, Trustee Lynn Thompson made a motion “that we receive all information when it is compiled, sooner rather than later.”
“I wasn’t the only person taking notes,” Ramos said, suggesting that anyone who wanted to see his notes should make a request through the Freedom of Information Law (FOIL).
“This issue is that we as a board decided to form an ambulance committee,” Trustee Patricia Maher said. “you know, an investigative committee to get information, get answers to the board’s questions, and then the committee was supposed to come back to the board and inform (it)of what was discovered during these meetings and interactions and we haven’t received any of that that information.”
“First of all,” the mayor replied. “investigating and fact finding are two different words. If not, I’ll stand corrected. We weren’t investigating anything. We were seeking information on the issues of the ambulance. What our models are, what we are doing. I wasn’t the only one there. I have the information. I’m not going to make copies for everybody. If you want to look at my book then by all means look at my book, but it doesn’t leave my possession, obviously, and they are my notes, you know, my interpretation of what I wrote and what I heard.”
Ramos said he also FOILed information from the Town of Montgomery on the subject of ambulance service. That led to a discussion of whether the FOIL request was submitted as an individual or as the mayor.
After further discussion, it was determined that a motion had been made by Thompson, and seconded by Trustee John Elliott, to compel Ramos to - in the mayor’s own words - compel him to “give up the information.” But no vote was taken.
The Town of Montgomery, meanwhile, has set a deadline for Friday, October 14, for prospective ambulance service providers to submit their proposals. The Town Board is expected to make a determination at its October 20 meeting.
Walden’s ambulance committee is expected to review the proposals on Monday, October 17, ahead of the next village board meeting, scheduled for the 18th.