LIBERTY, GIRARD Melfi: Trustees should have asked privately

Liberty officials propose a more regional approach to police and fire protection.
By TIM YOVICH
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
GIRARD -- Although Mayor James J. Melfi is willing to discuss merging safety forces with Liberty Township, the township may have gotten off on the wrong foot.
Township trustees agreed Monday to inform Girard that they want to explore combining police and fire services, along with dispatching.
Melfi said Tuesday that it would have been best if trustees had privately approached him first rather than springing it on him through the press.
"I'm always surprised by the Liberty trustees," Melfi said. "There is nothing Liberty can show me about how to cut costs."
The mayor pointed out that the city has cut $1.7 million in expenses over the past four years.
"I think they [trustees] could learn a lot from this side of Belmont Avenue," Melfi said.
Nonetheless, Melfi said he wants to meet with trustees because he's always looking for ways to reduce overhead.
Regional options
Liberty Fire Chief Michael Durkin said he proposed regionalizing fire protection after discussing it with Girard Fire Chief Kenneth Bornemiss.
Durkin said he wants to explore merging with Girard, Vienna and Hubbard, although Girard is the "main focus."
Those in charge of government grants are more apt to approve them if the grants involve a regional approach rather than one community, the chief pointed out.
Girard recently eliminated its fire department-operated ambulance service; Liberty operates its own ambulance. Durkin said he wants to look at how any additional service, such as with Girard, would be funded before discussing it.
Bornemiss said he hasn't seen any proposals and that it's too early to discuss it, noting he doesn't know if a merger would benefit either fire department.
Opposition
Girard Police Chief Anthony Ross said he's "100 percent against it."
Ross said that the number of officers in his department has dwindled from 29 to 14 and that he's short of dispatchers. He said he thinks his dispatchers wouldn't be able to take care of Liberty's needs.
"They can lay off employees if they want to save money. Liberty always wants something, but never wants to give," he asserted.
Liberty Police Chief Anthony Slifka said he doesn't want to see the township lose its dispatching center, which is in the township administration center.
"It's a lifeline," Slifka said, pointing out that the center receives thousands of calls per year.
Slifka said he is concerned about the center because of the cost of dispatching. The center is running at a deficit this year, according to the state auditor.
Of an overall merger of safety forces, Slifka said, "Nobody wants to give up their domain."
yovich@vindy.com