Like many municipalities, the Village of Fredonia must purchase new narrow band radios to comply with federal requirements, however, it will cost the village $70,000. Other business Monday night was conducted behind closed doors.
All municipalities are required to comply with the reduced band requirements for emergency responders by Jan. 1 or face fines. The village budgeted for $65,000 to make the transition earlier in the year, when prices were lower.
The law requiring narrower banding for emergency communication devices was enacted due to the growing use of personal communication systems such as cell phones. As radio bands become more congested with signals, a need has been foreseen to convert many systems to use narrower bands which take up less space in the airwaves.
The village board passed a bond resolution for $70,000 to cover the radios on Monday during a regular meeting. A workshop meeting prior to the regular meeting was truncated by a closed executive session, which resumed after the regular meeting. The reason given in the meeting minutes for the closed-door session was "... authorized by Section 105(1)(f) of the Public Officers Law to discuss pending litigation, personnel at the water plant and to discuss information related to a current investigation of a criminal offense that would imperil effective law enforcement if disclosed."
Open meetings laws dictate closed-door, executive sessions are only to be called for limited meetings, including issues pending litigation as well as personnel issues.
However, the initial executive session lasted nearly an hour, and resumed for an unknown period of time after the regular meeting was adjourned. A telephone call to Trustee Joseph Cerrie was not returned for comments.
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