By Erik German
Newsday (New York)
Copyright 2006 Newsday, Inc.
A group of Gordon Heights Fire District residents, exasperated at paying Long Island’s highest fire taxes, have begun circulating a petition to dissolve the district — a move experts called unprecedented in New York State.
“I’ve been doing this 30 years and I’ve never heard of a district being dissolved,” said William Young, of upstate Guilderland, counsel to the Association of Fire Districts for the State of New York.
While Gordon Heights fire officials called the push for dissolution rash, petitioners say average fire tax bills of $1,344 — nearly four times higher than one neighboring district — demand a radical solution.
“We’ve got a fire department that’s out of control,” said one petition signer, William Gadson, 53, whose 2006 bill comes to $1,410. “Whatever our neighbors are paying, that’s what we want to pay.”
But Assistant Fire Chief Erton Rudder insisted the issue runs deeper than cost. “A closed firehouse symbolizes a reduction in safety in the community,” he said. “This fire department is the glue that holds this community together.”
Gordon Heights is a small, predominantly black neighborhood nestled between Coram, Middle Island and Yaphank. Its fire department, which protects fewer than 900 homes, has a $1.48-million budget, a fleet of 20 vehicles, a 24-hour emergency medical staff and three secretaries.
“George Bush doesn’t have that many secretaries,” said Joyce Bourne, 61, who said she paid $2,070.78 in fire taxes last year. Fire Commissioner Philip Gordon said the department’s history as a black organization must be preserved.
Bourne, who is black, said, “They’re trying to play the race card, but the only color about this is green, and it’s called money.”
Herb Davis, a 48-year fire commissioner in Yaphank, said about Gordon Heights, “They don’t have the buildings or other taxable areas to substantiate the type of budget they’re carrying.”
Gordon blamed costly federal safety mandates and said commissioners were considering ways to reduce the tax burden. He said details would be forthcoming at a community meeting Thursday at 7 p.m. at the firehouse on 23 Hawkins Ave.
Gina Previte, one of the petition organizers, said the group has gathered more than 200 signatures - more than half the amount needed. Donald Price, one of the notaries gathering names, said he expects to finish by August. With enough signatures, the petition will land in Brookhaven Town Hall for public hearings and a possible town board vote on the district’s fate.
Councilwoman Carol Bissonette, Brookhaven’s fire department liaison, said it would set a “dangerous precedent” to dissolve the fire district. “While we are faced with a challenge that truly exists, I am confident that we will be able to find a solution that addresses everyone’s concerns,” she said.
Privately, other town officials describe the political dilemma pitting two highly charged constituencies against each other as a “nightmare.”
Meanwhile, residents such as Melvin Robinson, 66, said they’ve had enough of fire commissioners who set department budgets and tax rates. “The department is wonderful,” said Robinson, who has lived in Gordon Heights since 1942. “The commissioners - enough with ‘em.”
What they pay
Average fire taxes of Gordon Heights and surrounding fire districts:
Medford $358
Yaphank $398
Middle Island $505
Coram $842
Gordon Heights $1,344