AUSTINTOWN Feeling the heat as cuts loom

If the police levy doesn't pass, firefighters will likely face layoffs, trustees said.
By IAN HILL
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
AUSTINTOWN -- The township's firefighters have dealt with layoffs, budget cuts and the closing of a fire station during the past few months.
Now, as election day approaches, they're nervously wondering what's next.
"Everybody's nerves are on edge," said Capt. Chris Ludt, adding that morale among firefighters is so bad it's "nonexistent."
Ludt and George Teutsch, the president of the firefighter's union, said every day firefighters report to the station worried that township trustees will announce more cuts are being made in the department. The stress has caused firefighters to snap at one another over little disagreements, Ludt and Teutsch said.
This year, in an effort to save money, trustees have eliminated the fire inspection department, abolished a department maintenance position, closed fire station No. 4 on South Turner Road, and laid off seven part-time firefighters.
Deficit
Trustees have said that even when the layoffs and budget cuts are taken into account, the township is still expected to have a $700,000 deficit at the end of this year. The deficit is a result of increases in the cost of insurance, workers' compensation and wages, and decreased revenue, township officials said.
The township also had to take out a $500,000 loan after paying $460,000 to Phar-Mor in November for an unexpected tax refund.
A 2.5-mill levy that would raise $1.4 million for township police will appear on the ballot Tuesday. Trustees have been using general fund money to pay for police.
If the police levy passes, the general fund revenue that had been used for police would be diverted to the fire department.
Trustees recently said that if the levy doesn't pass, there most likely will be more layoffs, and they will probably close station No. 3 on South Raccoon Road. No. 3 is manned by part-time firefighters.
Old equipment
Ludt and Teutsch said that as a result of the budget cuts, firefighters have been given additional maintenance and fire inspection responsibilities. Teutsch added that the township hasn't updated old equipment or paid for bioterrorism training mandated in the wake of Sept. 11.
He noted that the department's oxygen packs have yet to be brought up to 1987 standards.
"We have all these demands, and what we're doing is actually sliding backwards," Ludt said.
Firefighters also said they're worried about how the township could be affected by the layoffs and the closing of No. 4, which was manned by part-time firefighters. They said the part-time firefighters are needed to serve as backups and assist at fires.
Questions
Ludt said many of the firefighters also have questions about how and why the township got into financial trouble.
The trustees "OK every buck that's spent," he said.
Firefighters have been at odds with trustees in recent months as they negotiated for a new contract. The negotiations yielded a three-year contract for firefighters that included 3 percent annual raises.
The contract also calls for firefighters to help pay for health care. Trustees had paid firefighters' health-care premiums in the past.
hill@vindy.com