Commission tables new HVAC system for KAMP Ambulance

Jeniffer Graham, The Dominion Post, Morgantown, W.Va.
·2 min read

Apr. 19—KINGWOOD — No decision was made on a request by KAMP Ambulance for help to pay for a new HVAC unit.

In 2021, KAMP Ambulance added a second station located in the southern end of the Preston County. It began as a temporary station in Newburg. It later moved to Fellowsville after the Fellowsville Volunteer Fire Department purchased the old Mountaineer Ambulance building and allowed KAMP use of the building, according to Shawna Knotts, vice president of KAMP Ambulance.

Knotts asked the Preston County Commission for help in replacing the current HVAC system. She said the AC unit has been recharged multiple times. There are also problems with the furnace—it has been fixed three times since the beginning of the year.

Knotts said due to years of neglect, which was done before the fire department purchased the building, the entire HVAC system must be replaced.

"We will need to see where we can pull money from, " Commissioner Hunter Thomas said. "We'll have an answer next Tuesday."

But this week, Thomas said he did not believe the commission could provide the full amount KAMP needs for the HVAC.

"My only hesitation is if we give you money, other people will walk in and want money, " Commission President Don Smith said.

"This will create a domino effect. We need to table it for the time-being."

County Administrator Nathan Raybeck said the commission must decide about its computers. He said the cost of new computers could be $19, 000 to $28, 188, depending on whether 22 or 32 computers are replaced. He said he would have a technician check the computers and find out how many need to be replaced this fiscal year and how many can wait until next year.

"They should have been staggered when they were bought, " Smith said. "Is there a way we can get by, by replacing 12 this year and 12 next year ? Then every five years we will know how many we need to replace, and it will cost less than replacing them all at once."

No further action was taken.

Raybeck said he also received a bill from Valley Mental Health for the 2020-22 year for $5, 000.

The next meeting of the Preston County Commission will be at 9:30 a.m. April 23.