East Syracuse and DeWitt at odds over fire contract
(WSYR) — For decades, the East Syracuse Fire Department has responded to nearly 15 square miles in the Town of DeWitt, but that could soon change.
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The Village of East Syracuse submitted its 2025 fire protection proposal to the Town of DeWitt to provide protection to the East Syracuse Fire Protection District. In the Village of East Syracuse's proposal was an additional $800,000, which was intended to be used to start the process of hiring paid fire fighters for the for the East Syracuse Fire Department.
"The East Syracuse Fire Department is no different than any other fire department in the country and in the state. They have problems. We have staffing problems. It's hard to get volunteers," President of the East Syracuse Fire Department Inc. Scott McInnis said.
In response to the Village of East Syracuse's proposal, the Town of DeWitt decided to put out a request for proposals (RFP). Essentially, this opens the door for other fire protection services to submit a proposal to the Town of DeWitt to be selected to cover the East Syracuse Fire Protection District.
If a different agency was selected to cover the East Syracuse Fire Protection District, this would exclude the Village of East Syracuse, as that is where the East Syracuse Fire Department is located.
"It leaves us just with protecting the village of East Syracuse. Which we're more than happy to do, but we again feel we are most qualified for the northern portion of the Town of DeWitt," McInnis said.
The East Syracuse Fire Protection District includes residential housing, a large commercial business district, several high occupancy hotels, the New York State Thruway, and property next to the Syracuse Airport.
"We have familiarity with the district, the businesses, the intricacies of the hazards that are in that district," McInnis explained. "We just feel that we're the best to do it, and we've been doing it for decades, and we want to continue to do it."
Fire protection services can submit proposals for fire protection services to cover the East Syracuse Fire Protection District to the DeWitt Town Board until December 2.
