The only person on the ballot in tomorrow’s election to fill an open seat on the Jamesport board of fire commissioners says if he’s elected he will decline to serve.
Jim Kane, who served as a commissioner for 30 years before choosing not to run for re-election four years ago, decided to throw his hat in the ring again when he heard current chairman of the board Tom Brady was not going to run for a new term this year.
“I was coming back because I thought I could help,” Kane said in an interview today. “The district’s finances are very tight. We’ve had a lot of turmoil this year. With all my experience on the board, I thought could help the district move forward,” Kane said.
No one else filed a nominating petition before last month’s deadline so Kane’s is the only name that will appear on the ballot.
Nevertheless, Kane is not the only candidate in the election. Joseph Szot Jr. is running a write-in campaign.
Szot, 53, who’s been a member of the Jamesport Fire Department since April 2012, said he was “asked to run” by other members.
One of the main reasons he’s seeking election to the board is his belief that the district must continue to run its rescue squad.
“The commissioners have been talking about eliminating the EMS,” Szot said today.
Szot strongly favors retaining the EMS in Jamesport. The Jamesport Fire Department’s rescue squad provides EMT first responders but does not run an ambulance. Jamesport EMTs assess, stabilize and treat patients, while Riverhead Volunteer Ambulance Corps transports them to hospitals.
“It’s important to have an EMS on the eastern end of town,” Szot said. During the height of the tourist season, traveling east from central Riverhead, where RVAC’s headquarters are located, takes time, he said. “We can get there faster.” This year, Jamesport Fire Department rescue had a few saves, Szot said, pointing out a CPR save and a Narcan save as examples.
“Having our EMS could be the difference between life and death,” Szot said.
Kane said that he supports the EMS, “while we can still do it,” but with finances being as tight as they are, he said, “that’s one of the things you have to take a look at.”
Kane said the state-imposed tax levy cap has made it difficult to fund the department’s needs. The cap is set at the lower of 2 percent or the rate of inflation, so it’s been less than 1 percent the past couple years.
“In ‘17, the increase we’re allowed under the cap is eaten up by increases in workers comp costs alone,” Kane said.
The other thing stressing the district’s budget, Kane said, is the cost associated with the ongoing proceedings against a former assistant chief who crashed an official vehicle in Southold last February as he returned home from the Washington’s Birthday parade in Greenport Village. The district has spent an estimated $30,000 in legal fees on that matter, which isn’t yet concluded. David McKillop, a longtime member of JFD, pleaded guilty last month to driving while intoxicated. He had been placed on a leave of absence by the commissioners and subsequently suspended from the department.
The department is reeling from the crash and its aftermath, Kane said.
“I was hoping I could bring healing and thought my years of experience could help with financial aspects,” he said.
But Kane said the election got ugly and it made him reconsider. There have been a lot of rumors and innuendo, he said. Someone posted a really nasty letter about him on Facebook, too, he said.
“Due to all the negative stuff, all the rumors and things, it made me think, do I need this?”
Kane went out of his way to say he does not believe Szot has been involved in negative campaign tactics.
He has not been actively campaigning, he said and if he is elected, he would “resign” and hopes the board of commissioners would set a special election to fill the seat.
The board could also appoint someone to fill the vacancy if Kane wins and declines to serve, Szot said. He doesn’t think that would be a good thing, just as he is opposed to the ballot proposition to change the district treasurer from an elected position to an appointed one.
Kane supports having the board appoint the treasurer. He believes it’s a job that can be performed by the district secretary.
Voting takes place tomorrow, Dec. 13, from 3 to 9 p.m at fire department headquarters on Manor lane.
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