The biggest equipment decision hanging over the Croton Fire Department is settled: the village signed the contract for a new Engine 119 on March 18, Deputy Mayor Len Simon told the Fire Council on March 31 — a meeting that opened late because firefighters had been at a working fire at 22 Palmer Avenue earlier in the day. Council President Chris Colombo gaveled the session in at 7:42 p.m., and the Palmer Avenue run threaded through nearly every report. The village manager, who watched the response firsthand, thanked "all the departments and our own" for their work at the Palmer Fire, and passed along the reaction on the street: residents said "it's great to know that they call, and we all come." The manager also brought news that will touch far more households than the fire: the county has changed its election districts, and the Grand Street firehouse will no longer be a polling place. Washington Engine will be, starting with the June primaries. Simon covered the rest of the village-side agenda, according to the minutes. The village is looking at legislation that would give fire and EMS first responders preference for affordable housing, and members briefly discussed who would qualify. The draft budget is out. And a legislative package assembled by 2nd Assistant Chief Joe Streany has gone up to Albany. The Engine 119 purchase caps a process that began in early 2025, when the council's truck committee started drawing up specifications for the replacement pumper. This month's committee report was four words long: "Contract has been signed." The fleet it will join needs the help. In the chiefs' reports, the department noted that the current Engine 119 is out of service and Engine 120 is back, with village mechanics exploring whether smaller repair jobs can now be handled in the firehouse. At the Grand Street firehouse, the rear floor work is finished and "the lighting looks great," the chief of department reported — and also praised the Palmer Avenue crews for "a job well done." An assistant chief who arrived late, straight from a session with the fire investigators, thanked everyone who responded and said the department hopes to run demonstrations and training at the Grand Street firehouse during Summerfest. On the business side, the council adopted a new conflict-of-interest policy and approved a change with real day-to-day effect for members: companies will meet once a month, on the second Monday, with a formal bylaw change in the works. TL44's membership application from a new member was accepted. Washington Engine reported one member dropped from the rolls after moving out of the area, and letters were set to go out April 1 notifying two inactive members that they are at risk of being dropped. The council forwarded a Montrose fire department parade invitation for May 30 to its parade committee and declined an invitation from the Millbrook Fire Department in Dutchess County. The sharpest discussion came over a disciplinary complaint. A fire captain told the council that a member rode another company's rig and then refused to do any further work. According to the minutes, complaints came from three companies, and it was highly requested that he be "suspended for 30 days due to insubordination" — but after checking the bylaws, the council referred the matter to the captain of the member's own company to handle, and advised the companies to put their complaints in writing. The treasurer's report, an emailed account total of $6,801.13, was accepted on a motion. The correspondence file ranged from the routine to the warm: a thank-you from the Greenville Fire District for Croton's tanker covering its district during a large water main break, an invitation to the Peekskill Fire Department's 200th anniversary dinner dance, a FASNY recruitment flyer, thank-you cards from residents around New York State, and a batch of Valentine's cards from kids at CET School. For residents, the first visible change arrives at the ballot box: the June primaries will be the first election held at the Washington Engine firehouse instead of Grand Street. For the department, the wait for a delivery date on the engine Croton just bought — and the bylaw change formalizing the lighter meeting calendar — are what to watch next.