Rescue Squad Staying With Cobleskill

By Joshua Walther

COBLESKILL - After deliberating over a long process to determine if Cobleskill’s rescue squad can achieve independence, the Village Board announced last Tuesday that the volunteers will be staying as they are.

Back in December, volunteers from the rescue squad approached the Board to request their aid in becoming independent. The rebranding would have brought in paid professionals, which in turn would have elevated the organization into a better place to serve those in need.

In addition, their independence wouldn’t have meant the end of their services in Cobleskill, but rather they could reach out to multiple municipalities and attend to a greater region within Schoharie County.

To achieve their goal, the rescue squad had requested Cobleskill’s certificate of need, the first document required in the lengthy procedure. At the time, Cobleskill was in dire need of renewing the certificate, but the Board seemed to be amenable to the squad’s decision.

However, now one month after the renewal, Mayor Rebecca Stanton-Terk and her fellow trustees took a moment to explain that the document will not be transferred, as originally agreed.

Instead, the process has come to a grinding halt, and the two parties have joined in saying that the consideration is now over. Cobleskill’s rescue squad will remain as volunteers and have their supplies provided to them by the Village as usual.

Mayor Stanton-Terk focused on stating how the Village remains cost-neutral with the rescue squad, and once again thanked the volunteers for “being a part of the Village.”

In other news, the local water wheel received a much-anticipated progress report. The wheel itself is now hooked to the grid where it’s thought to be functional, though some bug reworks and comprehensive tests remain.

When asked for a timeline, it’s believed that it could be anywhere from a few weeks to a couple months before the wheel is completely operational.

Finally, while they were on the topic of reworking historic parts of the town, the Board announced that the Nick Iorio Park project is slated for late summer or early fall.

The wooden structure of Imagination Creation will be torn down to immediately be replaced with a safer, soft-surface design and further expansions to the park, including a pavilion and more sports fields.