Stoddard moves to renew ambulance contract amid fire-department funding gaps

The Stoddard Board of Selectmen on May 11 approved a two-year ambulance contract with Cheshire covering July 2026–2028, and discussed a series of near-term and capital needs for the town’s fire department.

The meeting record states the fire department’s ambulance-service analysis estimated roughly $698,000 in startup costs and substantial staffing needs to operate a town-run ambulance. The board recorded approval of a contract with Cheshire at an annual figure listed as $65,826, and later approved a separate motion authorizing Town Administrator Michelle Pong to sign the contract provided the amount paid to Cheshire County EMS is less than $65,000; Jason Kovarik made the motion and Chairperson Terri LaRoche seconded it. The motion passed unanimously.

Why it matters: the town faces a choice between creating a costly, town-run ambulance operation or continuing with a contracted service. The analysis presented at the meeting cited experiences in other towns and called out both startup capital and ongoing staffing as barriers to a town-run program.

Board members also confronted several fire-department budget items. The meeting record notes a legally required extractor and dryer with a vendor final cost of $17,440 but a warrant-article allocation of $10,000 (Article 35). Selectmen agreed to ask voters first to approve the full $17,440; if voters reject that amount the board will instead present the $10,000 and, if needed, cover the remainder from the department’s surplus. Town Administrator Michelle Pong was asked to consult the town’s legal counsel about the possibility of splitting the purchase across two fiscal years. The meeting record states the purchase must be completed by August 1, 2026.

The fire chief reported the department’s apparatus are aged (noted in the record as 28, 20 and 36 years old), with one vehicle increasingly difficult to service because replacement parts are unavailable; lead times for new trucks were described as about 24 months. The board reviewed and approved a set of routine maintenance charges and small equipment purchases, including a $1,154 replacement seat for Engine 2, new compliant gloves ($1,482), handheld flashlights, replacement of a failed suction unit (amount not specified), and a $605 emergency septic pumping charge. The department was reported to carry an approximate $42,000 surplus after these approvals.

The meeting record contains a naming inconsistency: the participant list names Fire Chief Steve Rockwell among attendees, while the fire-department presentation in the minutes refers to the presenter as "Jerry." The board did not resolve that discrepancy on the record during the meeting; selectmen minutes and signature lines list a "Dean Dorman" as a selectman while an earlier attendee list spells the same name "Dormen." These inconsistencies are noted here and in the audit attached to this package.

What's next: The ambulance contract paperwork is to be signed under the condition recorded in the meeting motion. The board will also present the extractor/dryer warrant amount to voters and consult counsel on timing; replacement of aging apparatus remains an unresolved capital need with long lead times.