ROLL CALL ( meeting called to order 19:00 hrs. on 07/11/2024 by R. Wilsey)
| PRESENT | NAME | CAPACITY | NOTES |
| Yes | Baumer, Heidi | Treasurer | |
| Yes | Considine, Dan | Commissioner | |
| Yes | Fletcher, William | General Counsel | |
| Yes | Friedlander, David | MFD 1st Assistant Chief | |
| Yes | Joint, Richard | Commissioner | |
| Yes | Sellman, Tom | Secretary | |
| Yes | Shipe, John | Commissioner | |
| No | Shuler, Steve | Commissioner | |
| Yes | Tschiderer, Steve | MFD, Chief | |
| Yes | Wilsey, Ryan | Commissioner (Chairman) |
OTHER ATTENDEES NOTED
| NAME | CAPACITY | NOTES |
| Mike Arman | MFD President | Representing MFD Board of Directors |
PUBLIC COMMENT
None.
CALENDAR / MEETING ROOM REQUEST REVIEW
No new requests received. Secretary Sellman reviewed the approved (at January organizational
meeting) Department family picnic and Rib-Off contest with premise permission for alcohol.
Scheduled date for event is September 14th – and is on the District/Dept. calendar.
SECRETARY ITEMS
Past Meeting Minutes
D. Considine motioned to approve the June 13th, 2024 District meeting minutes with a second by R.
Wilsey. The motion passed with unanimous consent of those present: 4-0-0
Review of Scheduled Meetings
The Secretary reviewed the date for the next scheduled District Leadership Workshop – August 8th.
Secretary Sellman reviewed the proposed budget-process calendar noting a scheduling issue with the
budget adoption timeframe being required prior to the November Commissioner meeting. After
discussion, it was agreed to follow R. Wilsey’s suggestion to (1) conduct the budget hearing on the
proposed date of October 17th (2) on the aforementioned meetings’ closure, open a meeting to
formally adopt the budget (taking into account any changes identified in the hearing). See Appendix
A for the calendar that contrasts the AFDNYS schedule requirements with the District’s
implementation.
Correspondence
There was a brief discussion regarding a letter received via email July 9th @ 22:40 (and previously
distributed to the Board members) from MFD Captain G. Francesco making observations and offering
suggestions with respect to the department response to a call on June 22nd, 2024. R. Wilsey noted some staffing and ambulance suggestions he spoke about with Greg – topics for future discussions.
Commissioner Joint noted that he had help direct the ambulance into location as Fire Police.
MENDON FIRE DEPT BOARD OF DIRECTORS REPORT (President Arman)
- Flags for Firefighters at Mendon Cemetery: 82 graves to receive flags – Department
member J. Martin working to convert/automate old databases to help keep better historical
records. - Members Building: Proposal from architect Rob Meehan notified of proposal acceptance
with near-term meeting(s) in a week or so. - A/C Upgrade 2nd Floor: Most recent repair/upgrade of A/C has generated a condensation
problem. Per J. Shipe, the contractor coming July 13th to measurements for additional and
missing insulation. D. Considine pondered if it’s related to some ‘sweating’ in the fitness
center – hypothesis is 1st floor A/C piping that needs insulation wrap as well. - Carnival Appreciation Event: August 6th – current sign-up totals approximately 131, with an
expectation of 140.
CHIEF’S REPORT
See Appendix D pages for the content presented in Chief Tschiderer’s report.
Purchase Requests:
-3 cars for extrication training: Northside Salvage $ 225.00
-Fire blankets for smaller interiors (like stove-top): Prepared Hero $185.91
R. Wilsey made a motion to approve the purchase requests with a second from D. Considine. The
motion passed by unanimous consent of those present: 4-0-0
D. Considine asked for clarification regarding the overlap of members that are behind on-call
responses and/or training – asking if there was overlap. The answer was there was a mixture.
D. Considine initiated a discussion regarding payment for a ‘grant-writer’ who assisted C. Knapp in
pursuing the NYS grant monies for either equipment or building facilities. Examining the historical
meeting minutes shows no specific approval for a dollar amount. D. Considine made a motion to pay
the invoice received for the same ( $ 1600.00 ). The motion was seconded by R. Wilsey and passed by
unanimous consent of those present: 4-0-0
TREASURER’S REPORT
H. Baumer received and distributed copies of the 2022/2023 independent audit report and indicated
they have been submitted to NYS as required.
Heidi also indicated that Payroll Certification was completed in June 2024.
There was a brief discussion regarding the $ 33K payment into the LOSAP system. D. Considine noted
that original estimates/planning had set an expectation of $ 50K.
There was a brief discussion initiated by J. Shipe notifying the Board that the District was fined $ 710
by the NYS Compensation Board for a lapse in Family Leave payment due to what seems like an error
introduced when the District insurance carrier was changed. NYS indicated they would settle for $ 250.
Per J. Shipe, ongoing payment for the future has been set up within McNeil.
R. Wilsey made a motion to approve the Treasurer’s Report and pay the bills. The motion was
seconded by D. Considine and passed by unanimous consent of those present: 4-0-0
OPERATIONAL COMMITTEE REPORTS
Capital Projects / Special Projects / Buildings & Grounds (S. Shuler / J. Shipe)
Building Air Conditioning: Replacement of 2nd-floor air conditioning completed but requires
additional insulation (also noted above as scheduled).
Landscaping: In answer to J. Shipe’s question regarding how the bushes should be trimmed around
the station windows, the consensus was to trim them down.
Apparatus
| Vehicle/Equip | Issues/Problems/Plans |
| 364 | No issue |
| 365 | A/C Issues fixed |
| 367 | No issue |
| 3617 | No issue |
| 3618 | No issue |
| Haul Trailer | No issue |
| 3c16 | No issue |
| 3c26 | No issue |
District Administrator’s Report:
See Appendix B for copy of the District Administrator’s report.
R. Wilsey made a motion to approve D. Sweet’s report with a second from J. Shipe. The motion
passed by unanimous consent of those present: 4-0-0
D. Considine initiated a discussion with respect to the coordination of planned absences and the
status/performance of the administrative fill-in.
Personnel
Leadership
D. Considine initiated a discussion with respect to the provision of fire protection service as it
relates to available resources and discussions about potential consolidation opportunities with surrounding fire services — topics of recent leadership workshops. Discussion revolved around how
to establish more forward momentum and get more participation. J. Shipe suggested that two
people be appointed to go to a Mendon Town Board meeting and discuss how to increase
participation. R. Wilsey motioned that J. Shipe be appointed to go. D. Considine volunteered to
accompany John. This was followed by a discussion regarding when the meetings are held and John
indicating a need to get on the agenda. Dan requested John to ‘keep him in the loop’ with respect to
the schedule of participation. The motion was not formally acted on via vote.
Information/Technology (from R. Wilsey)
- Truck-bay monitor/computer/ PowerPoint system replaced – and seems to be working better. Still working with Alpine on some kinks. Also updated multiple application packages with a positive result.
OLD BUSINESS
Cascade / SCBA System:
There was a brief discussion about options/approaches… ultimately the issue was tabled with the
consensus that there’s no urgency to make any decision.
3C-16 Truck Cap:
There was a brief discussion that reflected confusion between the Cap drop-in for 3C-16 and a
separate effort to look into the replacement for 367. D. Joint indicated he will endeavor to put more
emphasis on the 3C-16 Cap project.
NEW BUSINESS
None.
PUBLIC COMMENT
None.
EXECUTIVE SESSION
At 20:39, R. Wilsey made a motion that the Board go into Executive Session for the purpose of
discussing a personnel matter involving a pending investigation. The motion was seconded by J.
Shipe and passed by unanimous consent of those present: 4-0-0
At 20:50, the Board exited Executive Session and the regular meeting resumed. At this time R. Wilsey
made a motion to suspend Gregory Francesco pending the outcome of an investigation for an alleged
violation of the Mendon Fire District’s Commissioner’s Rules and Regulations Code of Ethics.
MEETING ADJOURNMENT
At approximately 20:53, R. Wilsey made a motion to adjourn the meeting which was seconded by J.
Shipe, passing by unanimous consent of those present: 4-0-0
Respectfully Submitted by
Tom Sellman
District Secretary,
Mendon Fire District
