TRURO — Voters said no to hiring four new firefighter-paramedics and purchasing a heavy-duty tractor trailer for the DPW at the June 30 town election.
Only 469 or 24 percent of the 1,929 registered voters participated in the election, with 214 voting by mail, according to Susan Joseph, the temporary assistant town clerk.
The vote on excluding the expenditure of $170,000 for a new tractor trailer from Proposition 2½ limits was 205 yes and 259 no. By a similar margin, 209 to 257, they rejected a Prop 2½ exclusion of $351,904 to hire four new firefighters.
The voters, however, did say yes by a vote of 255 to 187 to buy a new ambulance for $325,000. They must also approve this ballot question at the Sept. 15 town meeting.
The Truro Fire Chief Tim Collins and the select board favored the hiring of four new firefighters, which would add one person to each shift in a 24-hour period, bringing the staffing level from two firefighters to three per shift.
There were no contested races for town positions. Stephanie Rein got re-elected to the select board. Kolby Jackson Blehm is on the school committee. Monica Kraft was re-elected moderator. Martha Magane and Margaret Royka are library trustees and Marilyn Adams was re-elected to the cemetery commission. John Riemer and Paul Kiernan were re-elected to the planning board and Elizabeth Gallo is on the housing authority.— K.C. Myers
