Beacon Mayor Canidate Shows His View For The Fire Dept.

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One of the candidates for mayor in the City of Beacon, Steve Gold, has posted a letter on what I would do with the fire department. This is starting to turn into a storm.

The following questions were given to me by a firefighter in Beacon NY. Before you read my answers I want to express my gratitude to all of the firefighters for their dedication to protect the public at great peril to their own personal safety.

1. Manpower (Hire additional paid firefighters and/or promote officers, incentives for volunteers).

Answer: We need to hire a professional consultant who has worked at recruiting volunteer firefighters, to create a marketing program to find recruits in a new way. Recruitment has been a demoralizing exercise because we have been doing the same thing, looking in the same places and not getting results. A consultant will think outside of the box, look at different age groups, different occupations and different techniques. We can offer better incentives, pay for time spent in training and make the work more attractive. There are volunteers in other neighboring communities that we can begin to think of in terms of a larger community force. We can make daytime volunteering easier for municipal workers and all people who work in Beacon shops and business. I truly believe there are volunteers out there if we are creative and think in new ways. Because of the payroll expense involved in hiring four new career firefighters, such a recruitment should be taken only as a last resort. However I hope to be clear about the following…. no expense should be spared if the public safety is jeopardized, or if the safety of our firefighters are jeopardized. When fighting a fire is dangerous because too few firefighters show up, we haven’t done enough. That is why we need to act soon to find the best way to increase volunteer enrollment.

2. Dangers (Under 21 members unsupervised with unsecured alcohol, should alcohol be allowed in the stations)

Answer: I believe the entire volunteer service needs to ratchet up to a higher level of professionalism, not just under 21. I am referring to reexamining the volunteer culture and structuring it after national models that encourage values in a semi-military environment. I hope volunteers would also consider making the firehouse more of a family community center. Members under 21 need to be supervised but they also need to learn self discipline. There needs to be more recognition of the importance of leading young volunteers and generally a well thought out program to make young volunteers into a professional force. Regarding drugs and alcohol, random alcohol testing should be given by a supervisor after fire calls. No firefighter should be under the influence of alcohol when on duty.

3. New Firehouse (Renovate current stations or build a central firehouse)

Answer: I am extremely displeased with the lack of attention paid to repair and maintain the existing firehouses by the city administration. If the city paid as much attention to their buildings as the firefighters pay to maintain their equipment, they would not be in the sad condition they are now. Last month I made the first motion to pay for remediation of the led paint that is peeling on Beacon Engine. I cannot understand why it took this long before it came to our table. I cannot understand why engine exhaust is still mixing with air circulation systems in one of the firehouses. These conditions along with others such as the damage to Maze’s historic ceiling because of a leaking roof are all unacceptable. Regarding a new firehouse, I am not convinced that it is more cost effective than repairing the existing buildings. I am aware that there are advantages for training, office space and living quarters by building new. I would rather utilize county resources and modify existing buildings to solve these and other problems previously ignored. I also think a central firehouse may create unintended problems. We should also find ways to consolidate services and equipment with other communities.

4. Purchase a fire boat ($125,000 investment for our ever growing waterfront)

Answer: Our discussions on this are leading towards Dutchess County services, Newburgh services and obtaining funds from LongDock and other beneficiaries. We have been given information that there are very few real fire rescue situations. Most water rescue is from boats in distress.

5. Purchase a gator off-road response 4x4 ($15,000 investment to protect our ever growing trail systems).

Answer: I think that is necessary without a doubt however the cost should be shared with the Town of Fishkill since the rescues will be primarily on their land.

6. Full-Time Secretary (Paperwork and clerical duties mount every day, as the computer admin for the department I can attest the need for this position)

Answer: Defiantly needed!

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October 22, 2007

Letter to the Fire Chief regarding his criticism of the answers given above.

Candidates are supposed to make recommendations, not be quiet. The public should be aware of their positions. I have been very forthright about this. Many of the recommendations I make below I said long before I decided to run for Mayor. A few I decided to take a stand on as a Mayor. If there is something wrong with that....I don't know what it is.

Regarding the condition of our firehouses. There appears to have been or still remain unsafe conditions that exist regarding exhaust and led paint. There have been or still remain structural problems with roofs leaking and windows not being properly sealed. I request that instead of the Fire Chief blaming the City Council and me in particular for not solving these problems (I am only 1 of 7 and my opponent was a member and the President of Maze and a Councilman for eight years so he certainly knew the problems), I suggest the Fire Chief demonstrate more leadership and bring the issues back up to us for discussion.

Regarding volunteers, lets get more. Period. What difference does it make what suggestion I make, or when, or anyone else makes. Lets hire more and try any suggestion that works. If we don't get more volunteers and have to hire even one round of paid firefighters, the tax payers will have the burden of over $240,000 per year to start. That is a 4% tax increase from base. Any discussion other than how we can solve the problem of hiring more volunteers is ignoring our seniors and people on fixed income who simply cannot afford the increase. So lets stop attaching the messenger and solve the problem together!

Regarding leading young volunteers, if asking for them to be more professionally managed disturbs someone, sorry but it may be the truth. If claiming that no firefighter should ever, ever, ever go on a call while under the influence of alcohol...sorry but if there is anything wrong with that statement too, please let me know. I really want to know what to think if there is something wrong with that statement.

One personal comment about Chief Josephs criticism of my responses.

I have been a City Councilman for ten years and have worked very hard to turn Beacon around and make it a safe and enjoyable city...and one where the taxes are as low as they can be. Chief Joseph's response (which I will not print due to its nature) is both rude in tone, inaccurate, accusatory and confrontational. In fact he called me a liar! A liar is someone who intentionally states a mistruth. Well I may be mistaken but in the ten years I have been on the Council and with all of the public statements I have made, I have never, not once lied to the public. These are hardly the traits one would expect from the Chief of a department. I understand his passion and appreciate his hard work, but I expect him to write in a more professional and constructive manner in the future. And I sincerely hope this is not the tone taken when others have comments about the Fire Department that the Chief disagrees with.

Councilman Steve Gold

[x134 46]

Well, I grew in Beacon, Tompkins Hose to be specific, in fact I was very close to joining as a volunteer, but I ended up moving to Poughkeepsie. I'll say that regardless of how good a job the volunteers do on getting out on the scene, I don't like the idea of sending out one career FF alone. Let's not look at rosy pictures but the worst case (and not unrealistic) scenarios: cardiac arrest, Washington Ave.: BVAC's third call in the district, Alamo with an ALS unit from somewhere in the western hemisphere...you've got 33-11 on one man CPR for far too long. Fires, rescues...use your imagination, more manpower the better. Beacon is changing demographically just like every other town around here. I think the fireboat would be a great idea, in fact I think it's the responsible thing to do for a city council that wants to develop the waterfront. The ATV is a great idea, BFD and BVAC are always on foot on the Mt. Beacon trails. As far as the firehouses, Beacon Engine and Maze are beautiful historical firehouses and TH is a great albeit newer facility also. I'd like to see them repaired before a new station not just for the nostalgia, but the strategic/time saving benefit of having the houses located in different parts of town.

Dunderdale............lol

[Danger 160]

I hate you Donald Robison!

[x134 46]

I hate you Donald Robison!

JOHN YOU MAKE ME LAUGH.

[Danger 160]

Why? Did I climb a ladder?

[Goose 188]

Maybe i'm missing something, but i don't see whats so wrong with some of these proposals.

[JetPhoto 626]

Maybe i'm missing something, but i don't see whats so wrong with some of these proposals.

lets just say that one person still acts like a kid......

[helicopper 1,050]

Somebody want to give us the background on this? Sounds like the mayoral candidate was pretty well informed and was proposing some solutions to age old problems.

Why did the FD Chief take such exception to it?

[tdc202 0]

Well Mr. Gold was elected Mayor last night so let's see if he keeps his word to the public.

[SageVigiles 1,194]

I have a feeling I'm missing an inside joke or something here... Can someone actually fill us in?