After months of discussion, the Village of Walden is finally ready to join the new Town of Montgomery Ambulance District. That decision is expected to pave the way for the town to choose its provider.

At last Tuesday’s meeting, the village board approved a motion to petition the Town of Montgomery to extend the existing ambulance into the Village of Walden, beginning in 2024. For 2023, the village will pay the town $136,000 for ambulance service.

With that information, the Town of Montgomery is expected to accept a proposal from the Town of Montgomery Ambulance Corps to partner with Ambulnz, a private ambulance service based in Newburgh. Under the agreement, Ambulnz will provide Advanced Life Support (ALS) services for at least one year. The town ambulance corps currently only provides Basic Life Support (BLS) services, but hopes to have ALS capability within a year.

Town Supervisor Brian Maher announced this at the village board meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 1. Maher and other town officials were reviewing requests for proposals (RPF) from three different service providers: Town of Ambulance Corps, Mobile Life and Empress. Maher said the joint proposal of Ambulnz by DocGo and the Town of Montgomery Ambulance Corps fit the budget for the first year of the ambulance district.

Maher said the town had budgeted $664,000 for the district if it excluded Walden, or $800,000 if Walden were to be included. The actual proposals came in at $660,000 and $785,000 respectively.

Ambulnz is an organization that exists in 26 states as well as the United Kingdom and Canada. In 2020, Ambulnz was asked by Orange County EMS if they could speed up their process to enter the Hudson Valley due to COVID. On Oct. 15, 2020, Ambulnz started operations in Newburgh. Their headquarters is located at 453 Robinson Ave, Newburgh but they provide paramedic ambulance services to Orange, Dutchess, Putnam and Ulster counties. According to  Michael Witkowski,, Chief of EMS Operations for DocGo , the company started with four units and now operate 42 across the region. They offer advanced life support services (ALS) and have over 3,500 field-based paramedics and EMTs.

Town of Montgomery Ambulance Corps trustee Sylvie Rainaldi said Ambulnz would help them become an ALS provider, which they are looking to do in 2023.

“They know that we want to go live with ALS. They are committed to help us to get there,” said Rainaldi. Once they get there, Ambulnz would still be present for additional support.

Walden Trustee Becky Pearson asked about billing since there will be two companies working together to provide emergency services. Rainaldi answered, stating that there would be only one bill from the Town of Montgomery Ambulance Corps. “The arrangement between the two organizations is that they would be charging us a flat fee and the Town of Montgomery Ambulance Corps would be the only organization generating a bill. All services would be billed under the Town of Montgomery Ambulance Corps.”

A few trustee members also wanted clarification on the staffing model, which would be paid employees. Rainaldi explained there would be one 24-hour fly car (SUV) with a paramedic. Because a paramedic is in the vehicle, it temporarily becomes ALS even though the Town of Montgomery Ambulance Corps doesn’t currently offer it. Additionally there will be a 24-hour car and a 12-hour car (during prime hours) responding to calls that would offer BLS. Volunteers will supply additional and standby coverage.

The Montgomery Ambulance Corps is currently headquartered on Montgomery Street in Walden with a subpost at the food pantry building near Scott’s Corners. Rainaldi mentioned they don’t plan on changing on-site locations. They serve the communities of Montgomery, Walden, Maybrook, Coldenham and sections of Hamptonburgh.

Town of Montgomery Councilwoman Kristen Brown also attended the Walden board meeting and addressed the board with clarification she originally wanted. She wondered if one paramedic was responding to a call for ALS, what would happen if another call for ALS came up. “They [Ambulnz] said they would pull another one [paramedic] from Newburgh.”

“They can actually mutual aid themselves,” said Brown.

There was one other point of business to be clarified. Since the village fiscal year runs from June 1 through May 31, there is no money in the current Walden budget to pay for ambulance service. (Walden residents – as well as other town residents – pay taxes into the town’s general fund which had been funding ambulance service through 2022. That source of revenue will disappear in 2023.)

“If you vote to opt in today, the town and the village would have to negotiate a contract for service,” Village Manager John Revella told the Walden trustees.

Maher assured the Walden trustees that, while the service would be available as of Jan. 1 of next year, he would be willing to wait until Walden’s new fiscal year to go into effect to pay.

“I wouldn’t want to go past June 30 to pay this,” Revella said.

Residents in the audience were supportive of the process, and perhaps a little relieved that it was that it was finally coming to an end.

“I voted for many of you,” said Bill Sestrom. “I encourage you to vote for this because by the time you finish voting for this I’m going to need an ambulance service.”

With that, Deputy Mayor Willie Carley made the motion, seconded by Trustee Patricia Maher to petition to add Walden to the Ambulance Tax District.

It was passed unanimously, earning applause from the audience.