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Selectmen back emergency medical support; discuss funding for new ambulance and capital priorities
Summary
First Selectman Wendy Maxus and the Board of Selectmen outlined capital projects and signaled support for the Simsbury Volunteer Ambulance Association, proposing up to $200,000 in town capital-reserve funding (reduced by fundraising) toward a $250,000 ambulance; SBAA described low Medicaid/Medicare reimbursements and high elderly transport rates as the rationale for support.
First Selectman Wendy Maxus reviewed the Board of Selectmen’s unanimous support for the tri‑board budget and walked through capital priorities that include a bonded $2.2 million track-and-field replacement, ongoing district flooring and technology projects, Farmington Canal Heritage Trail (greenway) maintenance, and the Simsbury Farms pool repairs.
Maxus told the meeting the selectmen had restructured some smaller capital (formerly in the CNR schedule) into the operating budget to better capture recurring small capital needs, and noted that about $1.9 million in reserves would be used for certain one‑time and CIP items this year.
On emergency medical services, the board discussed a multi‑year operational support arrangement for the Simsbury Volunteer Ambulance Association (SBAA), with $160,000 remaining in planned operational support and board consideration of up to $200,000 from capital reserves to fund the ambulance vehicle (the total vehicle cost was estimated at about $253,000). SBAA representative Chris Kelly described reimbursement constraints: Connecticut sets a maximum fee for ambulance transports; Medicaid will reimburse only about 35% of that state maximum and Medicare about 47%, which leaves a structural funding gap given Simsbury’s aging transport volume (SBAA reported 3,000 911 calls and about 1,844 transports last year, with roughly 62% of transports for people over 65).
Board members asked staff and the town attorney to clarify the proposed ownership/leaseback mechanism for the vehicle and requested a drafted motion to move the capital amount (up to $200,000, reduced by funds raised by SBAA) to the CIP for consideration on April 21. The board also asked for clarity on how any additional operating subsidy or lease income would be handled in future budgets.
Other items Maxus highlighted included continued funding for the Main Street Partnership ($85,000) to support economic development activities and newly defined capital tracking to ensure recurring items moved into operating are monitored over time.
The board signaled that motions and line-item details would be returned for the April 21 continuation and that staff would bring options for where to place contingency funding for development litigation and fuel contingencies if costs change before year end.
