Area residents who benefit by the Littlefork Ambulance Service ought to give their input to a proposal to construct a new service garage.
Meetings are scheduled for Monday at Littlefork and Tuesday at Big Falls to explain the proposal. The plan calls for construction of a service garage in Littlefork that would include a meeting room, two ambulance bays with room for other equipment, a laundry, shower, lounge for emergency medical technicians and a mechanical room.
The proposal, brought forward by Sam Hege, is intended to meet the needs of the ambulance service in an efficient and cost effective manner. Hege is a 20-year veteran of the ambulance service. The facility would be built on Hege’s property, which would resolve zoning and operating issues, he says.
At issue, however, may the cost. Hege would require a two-year lease agreement, rentable at a fee of $1,000 per month, with the option of accruing $300 of each monthly payment toward an estimated $180,000 purchase price.
The ambulance taxing district board is already proposing an increase in the annual amount collected from residents in the district to balance the service’s budget. The proposal would increases taxes slightly more. Under the proposal, property owners in the district with residential market values of $80,000 to $100,000 would see an average increase of about $18 to $24 annually.
Now, the ambulances are housed in a two-stall residential garage with no water on site. Record keeping is conducted on another site across town. Ambulances are cleaned after runs with spray disinfectant and the 10 people who provide service must shower and wash their clothes after runs at their own homes.
The proposal sounds good, however ambulance taxing district board members understand that, with rising gas and food costs, area residents may disagree.
Ambulance service is an important resource for any community. But it may be especially important in rural areas of Koochiching County, where the timing of response and the quality of service saves lives. The Littlefork service responds to 75-100 calls for help each year.
Now is the time for district residents to have a clear understanding of the proposal and to voice their opinions on it.