Cobleskill FD could reconsider building use

1/27/2015

By Patsy Nicosia

The Cobleskill Fire Department will take another look at letting outside groups use its facilities after Cobleskill Regional Hospital auxiliary members asked them to reconsider.
And then kept asking.
Led by Hope Coons, nearly a dozen auxiliary members asked the Village Board to let them use the firehouse for events like their holiday bazaar and spaghetti supper.
"We love our firemen," Ms. Coons said, "We'd just like to share the firehouse with them."
Ms. Coons said there's really no other place in Cobleskill they can hold events like theirs, and if cleanup is the issue, they'd be willing to make some sort of security deposit.
"Thirteen months ago, we asked, and no one ever got back to us," she said, adding, "What we do is for the good of the community too."
Standing in for Mayor Linda Holmes, who is out of the country till March, Deputy Mayor Howard Burt, who's also a fireman, said the CFD stopped letting outside groups use the firehouse after running into problems with things like supervision and the kitchen being left a mess.
Yes, the village owns the firehouse, he said, but all of the furnishings-from tables and chairs to kitchen equipment-are purchased by and owned by the CFD or its auxiliary.
"It was becoming quite burdensome," Mr. Burt said, speaking to the need for firemen to supervise outside events and private parties, and at times, kids were even found running around the engine room, leading to insurance concerns.
Mr. Burt also pointed out that the firehouse is in constant service for department training and meetings.
"The calendar fills up pretty quick," he said.
Additionally, Mr. Burt said, there are local businesses in the business of renting out their facilities.
But none of them meet the hospital auxiliary's needs, Ms. Coons' group said.
They're either too small, upstairs and difficult for older patrons to get into, or they won't let the auxiliary cook their own food.
Mr. Burt conceded he'd like to find some way to work with the hospital auxiliary, and at the suggestion of Trustee Tim Snyder, Fire Chief Richard Cooper said he'd be willing to sit down with a small group from the CFD, both auxiliaries, and the village board to come up with a solution.
The hospital auxiliary's bazaar is held before Christmas and their spaghetti supper would have been held last Tuesday, but members said they'd like to have something in place soon so they can begin planning for this year's events.