A clash of minds in Malverne

Almost every single bench in the Malverne Village Hall courthouse was filled last week with dozens of Malverne Volunteer Ambulance Corps officers and supporters. They had come to the Board of Trustees’ Aug. 18 work session at the Corps’ urging to show solidarity in what has become a combative relationship between the two entities.

But the board successfully thwarted what it feared would turn into coup d’état by reminding those present — and those watching at home on MalverneTV — that the work session, while held in public, is not like a public hearing in that residents do not have the opportunity to speak or ask questions. Attendees received the information poorly, as many had planned to voice their opinions about lease negotiations between the board and the Corps, which is an independent contractor, not a village agency.

Unhappy that the board plans to charge rent on a Hempstead Avenue facility the village recently purchased and renovated for the Corps’ use, Corps members circulated a flyer throughout the village calling the work session a public hearing. According to trustees, the “misleading” flyer, which contained false information about the Corps contract and lease negotiations, is another example of the vitriol Corps members have been spreading.

“I, for one, am frankly quite tired of the name calling, the finger pointing,” Village Attorney James Frankie said. “This is all about ambulance service to the village and that’s all it should be about.”

Trustee Michael Bailey reported the Corps’ failure to meet its contractual obligation of providing 100 percent coverage. Last year, the Corps covered 78 percent of Malverne calls — an improvement over the last three years, when coverage was about 65 percent. “So 2010 was an improvement, but whether the coverage is two-thirds of the calls or three-quarters of the calls, it still isn’t what we need nor what we’re contracting for,” Bailey said. “We need As, not Cs or Ds when it comes to emergency service.”