3
Mid Hudson Times, Wednesday, April 6, 2016
Firefighters, Maloney call on FEMA to approve funding
By SHANTAL RILEY
[email protected]
Firefighters joined Congressman
Sean Patrick Maloney in front of the
City of Newburgh firehouse last week
in an appeal to the Federal Emergency
Management Agency to approve funding
to avoid cuts in fire staff.
The Staffing for Adequate Fire and
Emergency Response (SAFER) grant is
provided through FEMA’s Assistance to
Firefighters Grant Program. The City of
Newburgh Fire Department is applying
for approximately $2.4 million in funding.
“I’ve been working hand-in-glove
with the Newburgh Fire Department,
City of Newburgh and FEMA to ensure
Newburgh is awarded the SAFER grant
to hire additional firefighters and prevent potential layoffs,” said Maloney in a
statement following his visit to the downtown firehouse last Friday. “Without this
funding, our firefighters are dangerously
understaffed and unnecessarily risking
their own safety to protect ours.”
Working alongside city staff and fire
officials, Maloney was able to recover
$900,000 in FEMA funding last year, saving 10 firefighter positions over the winter. Another $500,000 in state funds came
from Assemblyman Frank Skartados’
office for the city to spend on capital projects, freeing it up to pay for fire staffing.
In a letter addressed to Assistant
Administrator of FEMA Grant Programs
Brian Kamoie last month, Maloney
explained the city’s circumstances.
“The demand placed upon the
Newburgh Fire Department has increased
significantly, while the resources provided to it by the City of Newburgh have
Photo provided
Congressman Sean Patrick Maloney stands with members of the City of Newburgh Fire Department calling on FEMA to approve funding to
avoid layoffs
decreased,” Maloney wrote. “The rehabilitation of old structures along with
new construction in the city has created a
challenging and dangerous environment
for first responders.”
“At this time, it is expected that the
city will be forced to lay-off additional
firefighters before the end of the year
that will cause the department to be at the
lowest level of staffing it has ever seen.”
Maloney was given an award for his
support of the City of Newburgh Fire
Department by the Local 589 IAFF at the
event Friday.
“Congressman Maloney is a great
friend to the Newburgh Fire Department
and, working together, I am hopeful we
will secure a SAFER grant to make sure
we are fully staffed so we can protect our
community and our firefighters on the
job,” Acting Fire Chief Terry Ahlers said
in the statement last week.
SPARC loses appeal in asphalt plant lawsuit
By SHANTAL RILEY
[email protected]
Environmentalists have lost an appeal to move forward
with a lawsuit claiming the Town of New Windsor rushed
the approval process for an asphalt plant located on town
property next to Stewart International Airport and the
Stewart State Forest.
In 2013, the Stewart Park and Reserve Coalition
(SPARC) filed a lawsuit claiming the town rushed approval for the Jointa Lime Hot Mix Asphalt Plant. SPARC
alleged the plant would emit carcinogenic pollutants and
harm the protected forest.
However, the lawsuit was dismissed in Orange County
Supreme Court in 2014. SPARC filed an appeal. On March
6, the Appellate Court of the Second Judicial Department
upheld Justice Catherine Bartlett’s decision to dismiss
the suit.
“Judge Bartlett’s original ruling was thoughtful and
well-reasoned,