LETTER TO ALLOTSEGO.COM EDITOR

Fellow Town District Residents Say:

Sign The Fire Contract With City Now

Editor's Note:  Here is a Letter to the Editor of www.AllOTSEGO.com from Carol Malz, who was elected to the Town of Oneonta Fire District #1 board of commissioners on Dec. 8.  Because of the time-sensitivity of negotiations between the commissioners and the City of Oneonta on fire protection, send any letters to info@allotsego.com and they will be posted on this site.

To the Editor of AllOTSEGO.com:

I was recently elected as one of five fire commissioners for the Town of Oneonta Fire District #1. Thank you to everyone who wrote my name in; I am honored by your apparently good opinion of me. Unfortunately, I may not be able to serve after Dec. 29, 2015, as my new employment may prohibit holding elective office.  Nevertheless, I have had many questions about the Fire District and the current situation, and have been asked many questions which I had not been able to answer.

Like me, you may have just thought we were covered by the City of Oneonta Fire Department and never even knew we had a district with a board of commissioners.  So, I have sought answers and here is what I have learned.  I welcome corrections of any errors.

The hamlet of West Oneonta and area to the west of Route 205, including the Plains, is covered by the West Oneonta Fire Department, which is served by volunteers.  The rest of the Town of Oneonta is covered by the Town of Oneonta Fire District #1.  All of the Town of Oneonta, however, is covered by ambulance services with the City of Oneonta Fire Department.