Fire Department Loses Custodian in Proposed Budget

The Amherst Fire Department will have to find a new way to maintain their fire station, according to their proposed budget.

Amherst Fire Chief Mark Boynton told selectmen at their meeting this week that he was not thrilled to lose a custodian, but it was the easiest line to cut out.

“There were no other lines to cut that wouldn’t have had an impact on our department,” said Boynton at their meeting on Monday.

The fire department's proposed budget is currently $488,176.

The board acknowledged that the budget is tight and conservative as costs increase for communities.

Chair Bruce Bowler expressed concern that the budgeted cost for fuel increases didn’t match the estimates of the other departments.

“We need to have the right numbers,” said Bowler.

Boynton said in a phone interview today that the numbers were off and he will be presenting the corrected budget at the Board of Selectmen meeting on Monday.

He said the calculations were off by $5,343 on the oil, gasoline and propane costs and is currently making adjustments in other areas of the budget to accommodate that increase.

In total, the department had had to adjust for $12,793 in increases such as retirement and fuel costs.