Commissioners, treasurer elected for Albion Joint Fire District
ALBION – Voters elected five commissioners and a treasurer for the Albion Joint Fire District on Tuesday, and also gave approval to establish reserve funds for equipment, fire trucks and building repairs.
The district was formed in a public referendum in August with approval from voters in both the towns of Albion and Gaines. The fire district will be its own taxing entity. The fire department budget will move out of the village budget. The towns of Albion and Gaines also paid the village for fire protection but now will pay in separate taxes for the fire district starting in January.
The elected commissioners include Albert Cheverie, 104 votes; David Buczek, 103 votes; Kevin Sheehan, 93 votes; Craig Lane, 89 votes; and Chris Kinter, 81 votes.
The commissioners’ terms will be for 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 years, depending on the vote totals for each. Cheverie, the highest vote-getter, gets the 5-year term and then the term length goes in descending order of votes with Buczek at 4 years, Sheehan at 3 years, Lane at 2 years and Kinter at 1 year.
In the future, there should be just one position commissioner up for election each year.
Two people sought to be treasurer. Victoria Tabor, who is currently in the role, was elected with 91 votes to 46 for Kristen Marciszewski.
Cheverie has served as chairman of the commissioners since the group first met on Aug. 20. Buczek, Lane and Kinter also are commissioners, along with Joe Martillotta who didn’t seek election on Tuesday.
The commissioners have approved a $872,222 budget for the joint fire district, which provides fire protection in Albion and Gaines. That more than doubles the previous budget for the fire department.
The department hasn’t had any reserves for new equipment and trucks. Residents approved establishing reserve accounts in a 112-24 vote.
The budget for 2025 puts $250,000 into a “Apparatus Repair & Replacement Reserve” and $50,000 into a “Building Repair & Replacement Reserve.”
Cheverie, the chairman of the commissioners, previously said the district needs to replace two fire trucks fairly soon. A new ladder truck to replace one that is 27 years old is expected to cost $2.2 million. A new fire engine to replace one 32 years old would likely have a purchase price of $1.1 million.
The commissioners expect to start working on securing a new ladder truck in 2025, a process that could take four to five years before the new truck is in Albion. Setting aside money ahead of time will reduce the bond payments needed in the future, Cheverie said.
The district also has $50,000 set aside for the fire hall for either repairs or a potential replacement. Cheverie said there are no plans to leave the building on Platt Street anytime soon.
