POUGHKEEPSIE – On Monday, August 5th, Congressman Pat Ryan delivered $1.4 million in federal funding to the Rifton Fire District, Tivoli Fire Department, Arlington Fire District, Kripplebush Fire District, and Beacon Fire Department and celebrated his nominations of the City of Poughkeepsie Fire Department, the Port Jervis Fire Department, and the Arlington Fire District for federal Community Project Funding for Fiscal Year 2025 (FY2025).
Ryan joined with leaders from the fire departments to celebrate the announcement. As part of his Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24) Community Project Funding nominations, Ryan fought for $500,000 for the Rifton Fire District and $500,000 for the Tivoli Fire Department to undertake critical firehouse construction projects and infrastructure overhauls. Ryan recently secured $114,285 for the Kripplebush Fire District for safety and operations improvements, $240,920 for the Arlington Fire District to complete crucial firehouse safety improvements and to bolster its technical rescue training, and $67,061 for the City of Beacon Fire Department to invest in new radio equipment. Ryan is currently fighting for $2.65 million in FY25 Community Project Funding for the City of Poughkeepsie Fire Department, the Port Jervis Fire Department, and the Arlington Fire District.
“Our firefighters are heroes, working around the clock with the sole focus of protecting others – that’s why, every single day, I’m pushing to make sure they have the resources they need and deserve to keep both us and themselves safe,” said Congressman Pat Ryan. “From fighting tooth and nail for every last dollar of Community Project Funding to overhaul the firehouses for Tivoli and Rifton to securing landmark funding for state of the art equipment for Beacon, Kripplebush, and Arlington, when our fire departments are fully equipped, we are all safer. I’ll keep fighting to deliver for all of our first responders.”
“The safety of Dutchess County residents is a top priority, one that we at every level of government – local, county, state and federal – share and take very seriously,” said Dutchess County Executive Sue Serino. “Strengthening our local fire departments with this federal funding will enhance these departments’ ability to respond to emergencies, and we appreciate Rep. Ryan’s efforts to secure these grants.”
“We greatly appreciate Congressman Ryan’s efforts to secure this important funding,” said Poughkeepsie Mayor Yvonne Flowers. “Making structural repairs to the Hooker Avenue Fire Station is essential, and this money would go a long way to achieving the goal. This funding also would enable the city to bring energy efficiency to a century-old building. I thank Congressman Ryan for fighting for these funds and for understanding the importance of putting resources into helping our first responders do their jobs to protect the community.”
“The City of Poughkeepsie Fire Department is extremely grateful for the assistance in our application to get the proposed repairs done to Station 7,” said City of Poughkeepsie Fire Chief Joseph Franco. “This is a firehouse that first opened in 1929, and it is truly the Community’s station. In particular, the City Team starting with former Acting City Administrator Ron Knapp, City Engineer Rich DuPilka, Deputy Fire Chief Vincent Parise, Finance Commissioner Dr Brian Martinez, and City Public Works Commissioner Chris Gent all got together to form a plan and submit the application to our Federal government partners. The assistance of US Senator Gillibrand and Congressman Pat Ryan cannot be understated. Congressman Ryan’s office has been in contact with us and has moved this application to where it is today. They have gone the extra mile to make this happen. These repairs, when all are completed, are expected to give us another 40-50 years of service out of this fire station.”
“This grant will help two very different, but equally critical programs within the Arlington Fire District,” said Arlington Fire District Chief William Steenbergh. “Our Rochdale firehouse was built nearly 70 years ago as a volunteer station and simply does not meet the needs for a station that is staffed by a crew of on-duty firefighters and paramedics 24/7. We are preparing to undertake a renovation to the facility to make it better prepared for today’s use. This grant will jumpstart that by equipping the station with a new sprinkler system that will offer vitally important protections to keep our personnel safe while on duty. This grant will also allow us to continue to train and refine our skills in the highly specialized and often dangerous area of technical rescue. As a regional resource, we have responded across the Hudson Valley to assist local departments when these infrequent, but highly complex incidents occur. This grant will allow us to train more of our responders and provide them with critical skills to both safety and effectively operate at technical rescue incidents. Together, this grant will help keep both Arlington firefighters and Hudson Valley families safer.”
“The City of Beacon Fire Department and Beacon Professional Firefighters are proud to announce the receipt of a FEMA Assistance to Firefighters Grant,” said Beacon Fire Department Chief Thomas Lucchesi. “With help and support from Congressman Pat Ryan and other elected officials, City of Beacon Fire Department has received over $67,000 for the purchase of new radio equipment. The new radios will enhance our firefighters’ safety and operational capabilities while protecting the citizens of Beacon and assisting our surrounding agencies.”
“The grant will provide our City the ability to replace an aging apparatus that is critical in protecting the Port Jervis community,” said Port Jervis Fire Chief Keith Brown.
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