New Canaan Council Reviews EMS, Fire, Police FY27 Budgets
Town Council · Meeting of March 26, 2026
New Canaan Town Council reviews EMS, fire and police budgets, no votes taken on FY27 spending. Emergency Management Director Russ Kimes recommended switching the town's public safety radio maintenance from Motorola to Northeastern Communications for $78,660, after Motorola sought a 31 percent price hike. Fire Chief Basset requested a $4.844 million operating budget and said a pumper replacement is being moved up to fiscal 2027 due to rising repair costs on the aging fleet.
Police Chief John Defedo sought $8.373 million in operating funds and $549,000 in capital, including $300,000 for three patrol vehicles. Councilor Eric Tunham said EMS volunteer hours "would likely cost us between a million and a million and a half dollars" if paid staff replaced them. The council approved minutes and adjourned unanimously; no budget votes occurred.
In the full story:
- The complete report — 811 words
Source: the Town Council meeting of March 26, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.
The Full Article
NEW CANAAN — March 26, 2026 — The New Canaan Town Council spent its Thursday meeting reviewing proposed fiscal year 2027 budgets for emergency medical services, emergency management, the fire department and the police department, hearing a recommendation to move the town's public safety radio maintenance contract away from Motorola and a fire department plan to accelerate replacement of an aging pumper truck.
No formal budget votes were taken. The council did approve minutes from its March 12 and March 18 meetings and adjourned on a unanimous voice vote after roughly three hours of department presentations.
The Full Story
New Canaan EMS, represented by presenters John Knighton and Barb Clayton, told the council its volunteer service responded to 1,734 calls involving 1,800 patients over the past year, staffed entirely by more than 50 volunteers who logged 28,633 hours. The organization's paramedic contract with the town, now in its fourth of five years, holds flat at $465,000 annually through June 30, 2028. The town's contribution toward EMS vehicle maintenance would rise 3 percent, and support for medical supplies and equipment would rise 5 percent to $61,260. EMS is also seeking $85,000 in capital funds for a new paramedics' SUV.
Emergency Management Director Russ Kimes recommended the town switch its public safety radio infrastructure maintenance from Motorola to Northeastern Communications at a cost of $78,660, after Motorola sought a 31 percent price increase on its expiring five-year contract. Kimes said he negotiated that figure down to 21 percent but still considered it unacceptable. The radio system serves police, fire, EMS, public works and the town's search team across seven sites. Kimes said a full transition to the state radio system, likely costing $5 million to $6 million, could wait until 2030 to 2034, when current equipment begins reaching end of life.
Fire Chief Basset presented an operating budget request of $4.844 million, a 1.1 percent increase of about $55,000 over the current year. He said the department is moving up a pumper truck replacement to fiscal 2027, ahead of a planned tanker refurbishment, because the vehicle build process now takes three to four years and most major repair costs emerge once trucks reach 10 to 12 years old. The department's capital request also includes $40,000 for triband radios in three first-due vehicles and $20,000 for thermal imaging cameras and defibrillators. Basset said the department logged three fires caused by lithium-ion batteries, two in 2025 and one in 2026, and that response times in outlying parts of town, including areas near Valley Road and Jelliff Mill, run 12 to 14 minutes, above the department's standard.
Police Chief John Defedo, joined by Deputy Chief Walsh and Captain Franco, requested an $8.373 million operating budget, of which 87 percent covers salaries and overtime. Overtime costs total nearly $570,000, a slight increase from fiscal 2026. Defedo attributed a $250,000 rise in service contracts partly to $75,000 in expenses absorbed from the town's IT department and partly to required systems including body-worn cameras and in-car video. The department's capital request totals $549,000, including $300,000 for three new patrol vehicles and $150,000 to replace its taser fleet, which is being discontinued by the manufacturer. Defedo said the department retains license plate reader data for 30 days and does not share it with federal partners, in keeping with Connecticut's Trust Act.
"I don't think a lot of people in town understand just how vitally important it is to have this kind of critical service available to us." — Councilor Penny Young, on EMS
"The hours that your volunteers have spent would likely cost us between a million and a million and a half dollars if we had a paid staff of EMTs." — Councilor Eric Tunham, on EMS
"If a truck lasts 25 to 30 years and the trucks are roughly 17 and 12 years old on average, you can see that we're getting an older fleet and the cost of maintenance goes up." — Fire Commissioner Sven Angland
Why It Matters
The budget review sets the stage for the council's formal fiscal 2027 spending decisions later this spring. Residents will feel the effects directly: the fire department's shift to an "engine model" apparatus response is meant to speed access to homes with narrow driveways, while the proposed radio contract change and eventual state-system migration affect how quickly police, fire and EMS can coordinate with neighboring towns. EMS leaders also flagged that donations, roughly $210,000 this year, cover about a quarter of that department's budget, underscoring the volunteer service's reliance on private giving alongside its town contract.
Key Motions & Votes
- Vote: Approval of minutes for the March 12, 2026, and March 18, 2026, regular meetings Tally: Approved unanimously - Vote: Motion to adjourn Tally: Approved unanimously
Source
Town Of New Canaan: Town Council meeting, March 26, 2026