Northern EMS Needs Home
by Ben Hogwood

JOHNSON - Northern Emergency Medical Services, currently located on
School Street, in Johnson, is looking for a new location.
Mike Paradis, manager of Newport Ambulance Services, Inc., the parent of
NEMS, said that the service is currently in need of approximately one
acre of land to put a building. NEMS is renting their current station
from the Vermont Electric Co-op. NEMS and VEC shared the space for a
short time before VEC moved its own business office to new quarters on
Route 15.
VEC recently put the building up for sale and several prospective buyers
have visited the site, said Kurt Poulin, division manager of NEMS.
While the contract with the five towns of Johnson, Eden, Hyde Park,
Waterville and Belvidere states that the ambulance service must be in
Johnson, that may have to change, said Brad Reed, Johnson selectboard
member and vice chair of the ambulance board. Paradis said that while
they have looked at several sites, there are not many available in the
Johnson area. Those they have looked at are either too expensive or not
suitable for NEMS purposes. Johnson is also prone to flooding, said
Paradis. The ambulance service is looking into the feasibility and
response time in other areas, though they must remain central to the
five towns. Reed said changing the contract would not be a problem.
NEMS is looking to buy the land rather than rent. "They want to be here
for the long term," said Reed. "Instead of paying rent, they want to put
it towards a mortgage."
NEMS has constructed a floor plan for the new building and estimate it
will need approximately one acre of land.
Paradis said he does not know what NEMS, which is leasing the current
property, will do if the lease expires before they find a new home.