GARFIELD — The keys have been relinquished. No money has exchanged hands, but ownership of the former ambulance substation for Volunteer Ambulance Service Inc., more recently known as VAS Ambulance Service Corp., is now the property of Richard Hurd, the owner of the land on which it sits.

“It was the principal of the thing,” Hurd said, claiming to have spent more than $1,000 in legal fees. “It was not left in bad shape. From minute one ... I got what was mine to start with.”

Deciding the costs for a legal battle were not in the best interests of the members of the Emergency Services District, theNortheast Benton County Volunteer Fire Department board of directors relinquished claims on the building.

In 2001, on a piece of property at 16750 Old Highway Rd., Garfield, next to Hurd Cabinet Shop, a building was constructed at the cost of $1,500 by VAS to house a second ambulance. The agreement was verbal. Few written records were kept.

After VAS changed its name, dropping the volunteer status and began hiring employees, Hurd filed a suit against the newly-named board of directors demanding the group vacate thebuilding which sat on his land.

Months of negotiations yielded no results.

In May, VAS contracted with NEBCO to operate the ambulance service. Then, the two groups merged.

The ambulance service and all its assets were transferred to NEBCO, which licensed the ambulance as an advanced life support ambulance service on June 30.

Hurd filed suit against VAS Ambulance Service Corporation demanding the group vacate the building on his property after the company ceased being a volunteer ambulance service, changed its name and contracted with NEBCO for service. Thetwo entities then merged and NEBCO runs the ALS service.

“It’s (the ambulance service) a community service. We’re the caretakers of it,” Kara Funk, chairman of the NEBCO Board of Directorssaid.

On Nov. 3, the NEBCO board received a summons allowing 20 days for an answer. NEBCO answered, releasing claims on the building. Both parties agreed to each pay their own expenses and NEBCO will claim no interest in the building. The propane tank has been removed, all utilities disconnected, insurance payments ceased and the key given to Hurd. The agreement was signed by attorneys for both parties on Dec. 16.

Funk and Fire Chief Rob Taylor said the board believed it was not a prudent use of the members’ money to continue fighting thelawsuit.

“We learned a good deal about real estate law,” Funk said, adding that constructing a building on someone else’s property is done at the peril of the building owner.

“We decided it was in the best interest of the community to relinquish the building to him,” Funk said.

Taylor said: “Remember, NEBCO didn’t make any of the decisions to get us where we are today on that.”

Both said there are strong feelings in the community that a private individual should not profit from public funds, but they said the court fight would cost more than the building was worth.

“We don’t feel like we can take the $40 dues and use it to fight a lawsuit,” Funk said.

Hurd said his daughter, Missy Mason and her husband, run a patient transfer service and are planning to purchase a second ambulance which they will probably house in the nowvacated building.

“She’s in my cabinet shop building now,” Hurd said.

HISTORY OF VAS AMBULANCE SUBSTATION

◊ 10/3/01 Richard Hurd verbally agreed to allow VAS to construct a building on his property for a substation

◊12/18/01 Cost of construction outlined in VAS minutes as $1,500

◊8/8/09 Hurd sent letter to new VAS board asking them to vacate building

◊9/8/09 VAS Chairman Dorothy Williams responded to Hurd claiming the building isproperty of VAS and offering to sell the building at the cost of an appraiser or sell it and have it removed

◊10/5/09 Building appraised by Roderick M. Grieve, Bentonville, at $47,211, less accrued depreciation, for a net worth of $40,000

◊11/3/10 summons received by NEBCO

◊12/16/10 both parties agreed to a settlement

News, Pages 1 on 12/22/2010