On May 21, Hadley voters will be asked to approve funding for a new ladder truck for the Fire Department, to replace the 24-year-old truck that is no longer able to adequately meet the town’s firefighting needs. The department’s aging ladder truck cannot safely access a number of the new commercial and residential roofs and upper floors in town, as well as existing properties where solar panels have been installed. The last time this issue was put to vote, it failed by only 20 votes. I hope that my neighbors will join me in voting to approve funding this year. To those concerned about the costs of the new ladder truck, please consider this: insurance companies use municipal firefighting capacity to set prices. Without this new apparatus, Hadley residents can expect to pay higher insurance costs. We can either invest in a new ladder truck that keeps our homes, businesses, and firefighters safe, or we can see our insurance rates go up and get no benefit at all. To me, the choice is clear.

Sasha Kopf

Hadley