By Alison Cross
The Day, New London
PUTNAM, Conn. 鈥� At the town鈥檚 emergency medical services facility, first responders sleep on couches, soiled linens dry on a clothesline outside, and the refrigerator sits in a bathroom where the shower does double duty as a storage closet.
The former Highway Department building at 191 Church St. has housed the town鈥檚 nonprofit ambulance service for the last two decades, but Putnam EMS Administrator Tammy Szpyrka said it became clear years ago that conditions at the facility were no longer optimal after Putnam EMS switched from daytime coverage to 24/7 service.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e definitely not up to industry standards for emergency medical providers,鈥� Town Administrator Elaine Sistare said.
Mayor Barney Seney said the town is advancing a plan to relocate Putnam EMS to the East Putnam Fire District at an estimated rental cost of $122,000 per year. Whether that move will be permanent or temporary is still to be determined.
In recent meetings, the Board of Selectmen authorized $88,000 in federal pandemic relief aid for Putnam EMS鈥� rent payments. The board also approved a new round of negotiations for the potential purchase of the Providence and Worcester Railroad building at 70 May St. A previous plan to purchase the site was voted down at a special town meeting.
Szpyrka said the current Putnam EMS site lacks adequate space, bunk rooms for night-shift personnel and gender-separated bathrooms for staff.
鈥漈he crews that may have had a really busy night might still be sleeping on the couches and just trying to get a few hours in. At 6 o鈥檆lock (when it鈥檚 time for the next) crew to come in, there鈥檚 no time for them to just kind of sleep (while we) do what we need to do without waking them up,鈥� Szpyrka said. 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 really rest so much on couches.鈥�
鈥淥ur refrigerator is in the bathroom because we don鈥檛 have any space for it. ... We don鈥檛 have room for a dryer, so we have a clothesline out in the back,鈥� Szpyrka added. 鈥淏ecause of the limited space, we have to keep another ambulance over at the East Putnam Fire Department . ... Right now, technically that ambulance isn鈥檛 able to be used, so to speak, if there鈥檚 a 911 call that comes into town because (it鈥檚) out there versus here.鈥�
The proposed relocation to the East Putnam Fire District would move Putnam EMS approximately 3 miles east, to 263 Providence Pike. That location is outside Putnam鈥檚 special service district, where Szpyrka said 65%-70% of calls for service originate.
Sistare said there is concern that the East Putnam move could slow down ambulance response times.
According to a report shared at Tuesday night鈥檚 Board of Selectmen meeting, Putnam EMS has maintained an average response rate between 6 and 7.71 minutes from time of tone to arrival. Sistare said standard response times across the nation and state are less than eight minutes.
鈥淚f they move to East Putnam, part of the discussion will be (whether) they (will) be able to maintain that response time, or will it add what would be effectively a couple of minutes to their typical call and then push them out of what would be the goal?鈥� Sistare said.
The property under consideration at 70 May St. is in the center of town, approximately a three-minute drive from the current Putnam EMS building.
Seney said the board will not recommend either the East Putnam Fire District or the other property as the permanent home for Putnam EMS until it can evaluate purchase and sales agreements, renovation costs, and the impact on response times.
While Putnam EMS is a private entity, Seney explained that it is ultimately the town鈥檚 responsibility to foot the bill.
鈥淪tate statute requires every town to have a basic life support ... entity within their town, or a private entity to supply basic life support to the citizens of their town,鈥� Seney said.
鈥淭he town isn鈥檛 in the ambulance service business,鈥� Seney added. 鈥淎 lot of people don鈥檛 understand that ... it鈥檚 basically private whether we go with Putnam EMS 鈥� which is a private entity that we have a contract with 鈥� or we go with another private ambulance service going forward.鈥�
The town is currently contracted to pay Putnam EMS $305,963 for the 2025-26 budget year and $315,142 for the 2026-27 budget year for its services. According to recommendations from an ad hoc committee tasked with exploring options for Putnam EMS facilities, any leasing expenses 鈥渨ould be built into Putnam EMS鈥� annual cost ... and Putnam EMS would prepare a revised annual cost for consideration鈥� for future budgets.
In August, residents at a special town meeting voted down a plan to purchase the 70 May St. property to house Putnam EMS.
Sistare said residents raised concerns that the site鈥檚 proximity to a railroad crossing could delay response times. Additionally, she said there was pushback on the property鈥檚 $900,000 price tag. However, Sistare said this was before engineers determined that demolishing and rebuilding the Putnam EMS facility at its current site would cost upward of $6 million.
If the town moves forward with a new recommendation to purchase the property, it would require approval at a special town meeting.
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