It was reassuring last week to hear from both Pomfret town Supervisor Dan Pacos and Fredonia Mayor Douglas Essek about the new Brooks Memorial Hospital build, which is expected to happen at the former Cornell Cooperative Extension site opposite Fredonia Central Schools. Any dialogue from hospital leaders to local officials is welcome.

“(Brooks-TLC) are confident that things are going to move forward quickly,” Pacos told the Pomfret board Wednesday. “If it seems like they’re not forthcoming, it’s because they’re not able to share some information yet.”

Of course, when they do offer information to the community, it has usually been not so uplifting. Just consider the Lakeshore Hospital debacle.

Brooks and Kaleida abruptly announced the closing of the Irving campus in early December. During a recent rally to keep the facility open on Jan. 31, it again dropped a bomb on local representation and its employees that it would officially close the emergency room and behavioral health clinic on Feb. 2.

Health care is important to this region. But residents here have never received honest answers and information over the last 12 years from a struggling Brooks-TLC Hospital System.

Last week’s news from Pomfret and Essek is encouraging. But the record shows it’s tough to believe what will actually happen next when this group holds the cards.