FLY CREEK _ The new Fly Creek Volunteer Fire Company will work to save lives once it is fully operational next year. For now, the board which oversees it will have to be content with saving the district’s taxpayers money.

At its meeting Sept. 14, the fire district board approved a budget for 2007 totaling $93,065, down from last year’s high of $100,104.

"Everybody’s fire tax should go down by seven percent next year," said chairman Richard Carr.

Carr and the other commissioners expressed disappointment that they couldn’t reduce the budget even further, but they didn’t want to sell the department short in its first full year.

"It’s a crapshoot. We don’t know what it’s going to cost," Carr said. "If we find out we can operate under $75,000, in ’08 we’ll do it."

Several thousand dollars worth of items in the 2007 budget won’t be necessary next year as the district is incurring numerous costs associated with the new company’s formation and training. The fire company also has to purchase new equipment and turnout gear because they have more members than the previous department and have to restock some of the gear that was never returned.

"It’s high this year because we’re playing catch up" said commissioner Mark Weir.

"We’re not happy, but what are you going to do," said commissioner Ed Kukenberger.

Commissioner Margaret Wolff said the board members should be happy they were able to reduce it at all.

"This is down from last year when they didn’t have an operating fire department," she said.

The budget includes allocations in the amount of:

$15,000 for truck maintenance and equipment

$13,000 for personnel safety equipment and training

$10,700 for insurance

$9,600 towards the loan on the fire hall

$6,500 for ambulance services (provided by Cooperstown)

$6,415 for a payment on one of the trucks

$6,000 for legal fees

$5,000 for fuel oil for the fire hall

$4,500 for fuel for the trucks

$4,000 for communication equipment

$3,000 for office supplies

$3,000 for building maintenance

$2,550 for electricity

$1,600 stipend for treasurer and secretary

$1,200 for phone service

$1,000 for fire extinguishers

The board originally allocated $5,000 for legal fees and $8,700 for insurance, but upped those amounts at the request of the fire company’s corporate president Andrew Marrietta.

He said the board should hire a lawyer to write the corporation’s bylaws, as most fire department bylaws have simply been copied from other departments and are riddled with problems.

He requested the extra money be allotted for insurance so the district could get directors and officers liability insurance, which would cover them in the event of a lawsuit.

"Especially with the current atmosphere, quite possibly we could be sued," he said.

In other business:

The board approved a list of 32 fire company recruits. The recruits are on probation for six months, after which they become full members of the company.

Carr said there were 17 to 18 firefighters, nine to 10 first responders and three or four fire police on the list.

Fire company chief Alan Thayer said that training was progressing well and that the company had spent 153 man hours drilling in August, and 69.5 man hours in September as of the 14th.

"These guys seem pretty confident with what they’re doing," Thayer said.

He said company members would be getting pagers soon and would head out when the Cooperstown fire department responds to calls in the Fly Creek fire district to assist them and learn from their actions. "I think our guys can handle it."

There is a membership meeting for all members of the new fire company Sept. 27 at 7 p.m.

Board members encountered several more problems left behind by Fly Creek’s previous department.

Carr said all of the pass alarms that accompany each firefighter’s gear had dead batteries. Commissioner Wolfgang Merk said these alarms register movement and are set off if a firefighter doesn’t move for 30 seconds or so.

"Somebody goes down inside a building, we’d never know," Carr said.

Additionally, six out of the 10 air packs that make up part of a firefighter’s self-contained breathing apparatus (SBCA) were no longer good and all of the masks had not been checked in eight years, Carr said.

Carr also said several of the district’s fire extinguishers were found with bogus inspection stamps.

Merk said the former inspector used to stamp the extinguishers without testing them until he was caught.

The extinguishers were inspected and repaired where possible and refilled where needed, Merk said.

"I think nothing will surprise us anymore," Carr said.

The Ladies Auxiliary changed its name to Auxiliary in order to accommodate co-ed membership.

President Donna Mulford also reported that they made $600 in profit during the Fly Creek Community Day pancake breakfast. She said community members were pleased at how nice the fire hall looked and seemed to happy with the direction things were heading.

"People are beginning to show respect for the fire company again," she said.