By Derek Gentile
The Berkshire Eagle
GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. — Fire Chief Harry Jennings wants the town to get tough on false alarms.
With his department plagued by false alarms from buildings all over town, the chief has asked the Selectmen to establish a $100 fine for first-time infractions. The law currently carries no fine for a first false alarm and a $60 fine for subsequent false alarms within a calendar year.
In a letter to the board, Jennings noted that the Great Barrington Volunteer Fire Department has fewer volunteers than it did even a few years ago, and answering false alarms places a “serious burden” on local volunteers, who must leave their jobs or homes to answer the call.
Jennings asked for the fines to begin at $100 for the first false alarm, and go up by increments of $100 thereafter. Such a setup might move home and business owners to invest in more reliable alarm systems, he wrote.
Selectman Chairman Walter F. Atwood III said he understood the volunteers were particularly concerned with not just the number of false alarms to which they respond, but the fact that often the calls are to the same buildings, said Atwood.
Selectman Ronald Dlugosz said that such an increase may be necessary, noting that once residents are hit “in the pocketbook,” they tend to pay more attention.
The board agreed to meet with Jennings and set up a hearing.
In other business, the Selectmen have approved a single tax rate for the town of $11.36 per $1,000 of assessed property value. That is up eight cents over this year’s rate, according to Assessor Karen Avalle.
She said the average tax bill, $4,513.16, will jump by about $240 next year.
The total valuation of the town is $1.43 billion, Avalle said. A total of $16.2 million needs to be raised through property taxes.
The town’s water district also approved its tax rate this week. The rate will be 86 cents, up two cents from this year. The water district’s valuation is $715 million and the district, which is an entity separate from the town, needs to raise a total of $615,159.
The board also approved a special permit request by Kimco to construct a vestibule in front of Price Chopper and add some signs. The vote was 4-1, with board member Sean Stanton opposed. Stanton said he believed the added signs were unnecessary.
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