The Elbridge Village Board voted unanimously last night to abolish the Elbridge Fire Department subject to mandatory referendum — an amendment to last week’s vote declaring a state of emergency and turning all calls over to the Jordan VFD. This following a 2 1/2 hour executive session meeting between the board, Elbridge Fire Company President Bob Chuff and the fire department membership’s lawyer Jarrod Smith, who was retained during a 2-hour closed-door meeting held earlier that night. In their meeting, the fire company decided to decline the Elbridge Village Board’s request for Elbridge firefighters to contact board members or Jordan Fire Chief Doug Milton about volunteering under the Jordan VFD. “We decided that given their reluctance to volunteer to continue their services, and hiring an attorney, the village [board] needed to be in the strongest position possible,” Elbridge Mayor Hank Doerr said. “We’re under a state of emergency — we can’t ignore that.” Doerr said the group of firefighters that declined the village’s request to assist the Jordan VFD does not include the seven or eight volunteers who have been responding to calls in recent months. He said those firefighters are on board. “It isn’t the people that are responding to the calls — it’s the ones that aren’t responding that are upset [by this],” he said. The village board agreed to meet with the fire company at 8:30 p.m. Monday March 7, during its regular board meeting, to hear their explanation for why the Elbridge Fire Department should continue to exist. The amended resolution includes a provision that allows the village board to rescind the state of emergency and the decision to abolish the fire department following next Monday’s regular board meeting. Doerr said he hopes the board and the fire company can come to a mutual agreement.
“Hopefully we’ll have good news on Monday,” he said. “But like I say, we gotta be realistic.”