Fire district issue retains a rift

The fire department's union president criticized a funding plan.
By D.A. WILKINSON
VINDICATOR SALEM BUREAU
SALEM -- A meeting to find common ground between Salem council members about the fire district only muddied the waters.
The four council members who voted to form the Quaker Community Fire District with Perry Township had agreed to meet Thursday with three new members who oppose it.
But two of the new councilmen were absent because of other commitments or illness.
Councilman Steven Andres, who sits on the fire district's board, said that because of the its tight budget, the city sought to create the district to save about $600,000 a year.
"We felt we had the right to look at a fire district. It [the district] wasn't directed at the fire department," Andres said.
Support indicators
New Councilman Clyde Brown said that while he campaigned, many people told him they would support a funding issue for the fire department.
The veteran council members said they collectively had received only a few calls about the department.
Brown said that a 0.5 percent increase in the city's income tax might be an option to fund the department, adding, however, "I'm no lover of taxes."
The committee-of-the-whole decided to recommend that council seek a levy in May that would raise about $1.5 million a year for five years. The fire department budget is about $1.3 million a year.
But veteran Councilman Walter Bezeredi disagreed.
Three options
He said three options should be put on the ballot: a fire levy, a 0.5 percent income tax increase, or a levy for the fire district. The levy amount for the fire district would be determined later.
Bezeredi said voters would be told to pick one of the three. He added, however, that the plan may not be legal.
A judge has blocked the fire district from becoming operational. The State Employment Relations Board also is deciding if council could start the district while firefighters have a valid contract with the city.
Michael Burns, the head of the firefighters' union, blasted the plans.
He told council members, "Last year you were not willing to talk about a levy."
The fire district agreement between the city and township spelled out specific township properties that would be annexed to the city. Perry trustees said the agreement would protect the township from losing more land through annexations for 12 years.
Geoffrey Goll, the head of the city's utilities commission, later asked council to clarify its water tap-in rules.
Goll said that the rules are different depending on whether the property is in Salem or Perry Township, and that some requests go to the utilities department and some go to council.
Goll added the utility commission is not going ahead with the specified annexations in the fire district agreement because of the confusion.
wilkinson@vindy.com