The fire department got the lion’s share of attention during the public comment section of Monday’s forum on capital needs. Amherst Town Manager Paul Bockelman is recommending $250,000 be spent for the schematic design of a new central fire station. The problem, Town Council President Lynn Griesemer said, is that “we cannot do a schematic design” for a new station “until we have a site” for the proposed facility. Assistant Amherst Fire Chief Lindsay Stromgren told the council the department’s ladder truck is more than 30 years old. But replacing it was not among the budget recommendations Bockelman presented to the council for the fiscal year that begins July 1. Councilor Andrew Steinberg, who chairs the Joint Capital Planning Committee, said, “We did give very serious consideration to the ladder truck.”