It's not necessary, but County Attorney Chuck Zambito is advising the County Legislature to pass a resolution indemnify the Town of Darien against any potential damage caused by the new communication tower installed on fire department property.
If there was some unexpected accident, such as the tower falling, the Town of Darien would face no liability whatsoever if somebody was hurt, Zambito said.
However, the town is holding up signing an agreement to accept emergency radios from the county in order to get the hold-harmless agreement.
"I'm not sure how the two are connected," Zambito told legislators during the Public Service Committee meeting Monday.
It's not the first time the Town of Darien's actions have had Zambito scratching his head. During construction, the town required the county to apply for a building permit, even though legally, the county didn't need a permit.
"In the end, rather than fight about it, I said, 'OK, apply for the building permit' and they immediately gave it to us," Zambito said.
The tower in Darien was built on property owned the Darien Volunteer Fire Department. The county provided the fire department with a hold-harmless agreement because if there was an accident, the fire department could have been sued without it.
That simply isn't the case with Darien, Zambito said, but town officials are insisting on an agreement anyway.
Zambito will draft an agreement and present to the Legislature at a future meeting.
