Hollis voters will decide whether to buy ambulance
Property taxes collected from the Poland Spring bottling plant could be used for the purchase.
By EMMA BOUTHILLETTE Staff Writer
October 22, 2009
HOLLIS — Residents will be asked on Nov. 3 to approve the purchase of the town's first ambulance.
The cost, as much as $145,000, would be paid initially from the town's general fund. The fund would be reimbursed with money from a tax increment financing district in town, with $50,000 to be paid in January 2010, $50,000 in January 2011 and the balance in January 2012.
Property taxes collected from the Poland Spring bottling plant on Killick Pond Road can be used for specified town expenses pertaining to the area, including the ambulance.
Without its own ambulance, Hollis has contracted with Buxton for the service. At town meeting in June, residents approved $175,799 for the contract, said Town Clerk Claire Dunne.
Selectman Ben Severance said the town will save money in the long run if it buys an ambulance.
"We're fortunate, with our TIF agreement, that an ambulance is one of those things we can purchase so we don't have to raise revenue to pay for that," he said.
The ambulance the fire department wants to buy will likely cost about $10,000 less than the selectmen are asking residents to approve.
Residents voted at the town meeting in June to allow selectmen to get bids for the ambulance, Dunne said. A vote in favor on Nov. 3 would let them take action to buy the ambulance.
"The fire department has been looking for one for the past 30 years," Severance said.
Staff Writer Emma Bouthillette can be contacted at 791-6325 or at ebouthillette@pressherald.com
