By BOB MARTIN
Eagle Times Staff
ROCKINGHAM, Vt. — In what has been a contentious topic leading up to Saturday’s Rockingham Town Meeting on Saturday, voters overwhelmingly decided to create one fire department without closing any of the three stations in town, with a 191-103 vote that was taken by paper ballot.
The Bellows Falls Middle School auditorium was packed and voters were given the chance to speak for or against the article.
Article 9 stated: “Shall the voters approve the creation of a single Municipal Fire and Rescue Department with 3 stations, managed by the Town of Rockingham. A Transition Committee consisting of designated representatives from each of the three departments and representatives from the Bellows Falls Trustees, Saxtons River Village Trustees, and the Rockingham Select Board will be tasked to develop a detailed plan. Upon completion, the plan will be reviewed and presented to the Rockingham Select Board for adoption no later than July 1, 2026.”
There was an information session about the creation of one department on Feb. 22, and there have been social media posts by the Bellows Falls, Saxtons River and Rockingham Fire Departments in the days preceding the town meeting.
The Bellows Falls Fire Department posted on Feb. 24: “Insurance ratings, or ISO Ratings, will only be POSITIVELY impacted by a YES vote. NO stations will be closing under this proposal, so your insurance rating will not be negatively impacted. Residents in the Webb Terrace and Darby Hill area of Rockingham are already paying higher premiums because of the current structure. A Yes vote will help correct this. Do what is right for Rockingham, Bellows Falls, and Saxtons River. Vote YES on Article 9.”
The Bellows Falls Fire Department has been urging voters to approve this for months, as they also posted information in November about the importance of creating one station.
The department noted that a study by A.P. Triton began as a feasibility study to investigate replacing the Saxtons River fire station. Discussions led to all three municipalities deciding that the study should look at the three departments.
“The completed study provided several options to improve service, reduce redundant equipment, and share manpower and equipment throughout the Town,” the Nov. 12 post stated. “The Town of Rockingham can no longer afford to finance three separate fire departments. The town currently pays for all apparatus and equipment for all three departments. This means that no matter where in town you live, Saxtons River, Bellows Falls or rural Rockingham, you currently pay for three fire departments.”
They stressed that no stations would be closed, as Rockingham, Saxtons River and Bellows Falls stations would remain open. The new department would be the Rockingham Fire and Rescue Department, which would serve the entire town and use all three stations.
“This proposal has everyone working together, as one, to provide a better, more streamlined department, that operates under one operating procedure and gaining efficiencies by eliminating duplicate equipment for future cost savings. This will create a stronger, more diverse and well-rounded fire department for the future,” Bellows Falls Fire Department posted on Nov. 12.
During the Town Meeting, voters passionately spoke about this issue which has been in the works for about two-and-a-half years. There was an amendment proposed asking for voters to make a decision after a study next year, but it was defeated.
Some were adamant about needing more information before making a vote. Steve Cenate, who is a former firefighter and a resident of Bellows Falls, said a plan is needed whether people vote for or against it.
“We need a plan before we instigate any merger,” he said.
Another resident said they need to know “real costs” and not “underlying things.” She said having a solid plan in front of them would potentially help make this an easier vote for a lot of people in the room. She said that after two-and-a-half years there should be a plan in place, and this was frustrating to her.
Others felt that there was enough discussion and information provided over the years and called for the vote.
Susan Still spoke, saying that she has been a strategic planning consultant for 35 years. She said people are getting confused about the word “plan,” and what voters were actually doing on Saturday was “agreeing on a goal.”
“This is all planning,” she said.
Another voter, Paul Reis of Bellows Falls, said that after two-and-a-half years and 19 different meetings on the topic, “it is time to vote” out of respect for the work officials have put in.
This new department will be a municipal entity that is governed by the town of Rockingham, and answers to the town manager.
A $50,000 reserve fund has been built into the budget for future planning, and the release added that the groundwork has now been laid for a new, town-funded fire station in Saxtons River. The new department would involve this new station, as well as the Bellows Falls and Rockingham Fire Stations.
There is a proposed total budget of $491,654.11, and if the towns continued to operate as they do, the operating costs are $553,809. This does not take into account an additional $180,000 for new air packs that would not be needed if the departments became one municipal organization.
The project shows that the tax rate for each community would increase by $.04, from $1.2547 to $1.2947.
It was also noted that 60% of the tax revenue comes from the villages of Bellows Falls and Saxtons River, and 40% is from Rockingham.
The model of having one department with three stations was endorsed by the Fire Committee at their June 10 meeting last year.
Rockingham voters also approved the town budget in Article 5, amounting to $6,817,593. Also approved was Article 6 which included $99,219 to be allocated for social services. The largest items included $26,2024 for Visiting Nurse Alliance of VT and NH, and $25,000 for the Bellows Falls Senior Center. Voters also approved Article 7, asking the voters to approve appropriation of $123,584 to maintain town cemeteries with $30,000 to be raised by taxes, as well as Article 8 asking voters to approve appropriating $46,700 for support of the Rockingham Free Public Library with $387,250 to be raised by taxes. Article 10 was also approved, which asked the town to raise and appropriate $137,500 to match grants and loans toward cleanup of asbestos and lead contamination to buy the Bellows Falls Train Station building from Green Mountain Railroad and lease 9,860 square feet of land under and around the train station from the State of Vermont Transportation Agency.
Also approved was Article 11 asking to raise and appropriate $22,000 to fund the Meeting House Capital Reserve Fund, as well as Article 12 to borrow $375,000 for five years to fund replacing the town hall roof and roof drains.
