The Lakewood Village Board recently voted to keep the World War ll siren that alerts volunteer firefighters to emergencies. The vote was 4-0.

The siren, located on Summit Street in the village, has proven to be rather unpopular with some residents — particularly those who live in close proximity to it. A petition garnered more than 200 signatures from village residents and business owners who say they’d like to see restrictive hours placed on the use of the siren or discussion about other alternatives — such as utilizing new technology that would alert volunteers without disturbing residents.

This isn’t a controversy that is unique to Lakewood. Similar discussions have taken place in small towns across America. Many fire companies have switched to radio pagers to alert volunteers to calls, while other communities have opted to keep their sirens.

There’s no denying that there’s some great technology for volunteer firefighters. While pagers are said to be unreliable for some rural fire companies, smartphones now offer a dispatch app which can also give the firefighter a map of the location of the fire and soon will be able to direct firefighters to nearby hydrants.

Radio pagers often use a Web-based system called I Am Responding, which sends text messages and emails to volunteers. The alerts are sent out simultaneously, and the firefighters then respond to an 800 number to indicate they received the notification and are headed to the site of the emergency.

For the time being, though, the Lakewood siren is here to stay.

Whether you like the siren or hate the siren, it’s important to ensure we’ve created a platform in our community where folks are comfortable addressing village officials.

Village board meetings are often one of the first stops for residents who have an issue and they need to feel that not only are they taken seriously, but that their issue runs the full gambit of debate and discussion if it’s warranted.

We entrust our board members with the task of representing the taxpayers here whether we’re talking about a fire siren or a sidewalk.

The evening the siren vote was taken by the board, it was brought up as a motion in what some people have called a “surprise.” Several people who oppose the siren told me they were not in attendance and thus feel they were not properly heard or represented, although there has been discussion about the siren at several board meetings throughout the past year.

The fire department’s attorney was on hand for the board meeting when the vote was taken, so it appears that they were properly prepared and perhaps even expecting a vote.

Our village board and fire company are volunteers and there’s no disputing that residents are grateful and most appreciative of their service. But it would serve everyone — officials and residents alike-to remember that government is for the people and by the people and we’re all better served when we work together.

In other news-construction is underway for the new patio at Craft Burgers and Brews which will enable diners to eat outside and watch the world go by.

Craft has recently transformed itself from a fine dining establishment into a more casual brew pub to great success.

The good news is that the patio should be open in two weeks so it seems we’ll be out sipping a cold one beneath the midday sun in no time.

Also, if you’re on the hunt for barbecue you’ve got some great choices.

You’ll be able to smell the sweet smoke long before you get to the corner of Livingston and Dunham in Celoron. The folks hosting the stand on the corner say they’ll be serving up delicious barbecue most weekends.

And there’s a new barbecue joint in Lakewood. The Hog Wild Barbecue Company is also serving up some great southern smoked meats. Stop in and see them at 140 W. Fairmount.

It’s great to see Chautauqua Avenue in Lakewood playing host to some new businesses. I stopped in and said hi to some folks who are opening a home brew store. If you’ve ever dreamed of starting your own Southern Tier Brewery, you’ll find all the supplies you’ll need there.

And last but not least, the Fourth of July is upon us and as always, Lakewood has done an outstanding job planning the yearly celebration. Check out the lineup of events on the village webpage at Lakewoodny.com.