City agrees to be a ‘good neighbor’
Clinton City agreed to “be a good neighbor,” passing a resolution to apply for Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) for the Anderson County EMS.
EMS Director Nathan Sweet addressed the body Monday night during its monthly meeting.
Sweet noted Anderson County has already submitted a grant. Clinton has not.
“Something like this ... I don’t have a problem being a good neighbor,” Clinton Mayor Scott Burton commented.
Sweet said the grant application was for the purchase of new ambulances.
“We have several with more than 300,000 miles,” Sweet said.
Usually after about 250,000 miles ambulances are pulled off rotation, he noted.
The grant is an 80-20 matching grant, meaning Anderson County EMS would have to match whatever 20-percent of the grant would be for.
The final amount for the grant has not been decided, Sweet said, but he believed it would be in the neighborhood of $315,000.
Sweet said EMS is hoping to purchase at least two ambulances and any equipment they can purchase.
He said EMS can take equipment from the older vehicles to supply the new ones.
Council agreed to submit the grant — with certain conditions.
Councilman Jim McBride said he wanted the “check in hand” from the EMS before submitting the grant.
This came after City Finance Director Gail Cook pointed out the city would be responsible for the 20-percent if EMS could not come up with it.
Sweet said that stipulation was only fair.
Sweet noted the deadline for submitting the grant is coming up in February and EMS has to get some of the details for the application lined up, but securing the 20-percent matching funds “shouldn’t be a problem.”
“We have some work to do to get it ready, but we will,” Sweet said.
The big step, he said, was getting a sponsor.
Sweet also pointed out the new ambulances are designated to be assigned in the Clinton area.