5 commissioners all appointed for new Albion-Gaines Joint Fire District

ALBION – The town boards in Albion and Gaines on Monday both appointed two commissioners to the new Albion-Gaines Joint Fire District.

That follows the decision by the Albion Village Board to appoint a commissioner last month.

The Albion Town Board appointed Chris Kinter, the code enforcement officer, and Joe Martillotta, a retired school teacher and business owner.

Gaines appointed Al Cheverie, a former Albion Fire Department president, and Craig Lane, the deputy highway superintendent for Orleans County.

The Village Board appointed Dave Buczek, a former village trustee, to be the village representative.

The terms for the commissioners became effective on Monday. The five will serve until the end of this year.

Commissioners will be elected in December, in terms of 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 years, depending on the vote totals for each. The highest vote-getter gets the 5-year term and then the term length goes in descending order of votes. After the December election, the commissioner election should be just one position up for election each year.

The first commissioners will focus on a budget for the joint fire district. The five will have an organizational meeting this month and will pick a chairman. That meeting date hasn’t been set yet.

The decision to appoint the commissioners follows a referendum last week where voters in both towns approved the joint fire district.

Both towns passed the fire district by about a 2-to-1 margin during the Aug. 6 referendum. Albion voted 125 yes, 61 no, while the results in Gaines were 70 yes, 43 no.

Albion and Gaines town boards also appointed Victoria Taber to serve as the treasurer for the joint fire district. The elected commissioners will decide who will serve as treasurer when the joint fire district officially starts on Jan. 1.

The district will replace the current structure where the Albion Fire Department is part of the village budget, with the two towns paying the village a contract for fire protection.

The joint fire district will be its own governing structure with five commissioners. The district will have its own tax rate that will be in the town and county tax bills.

Albion and Gaines follow Lyndonville and Yates, and Fancher-Hulberton-Murray and Holley which have moved their fire protection to fire districts.