City Council President Explains Decision To Table SAFER Grant
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At the conclusion of the City Council's voting session Monday night, City Council President Anthony Dolce, R-Ward II, acknowledged the potential frustration local residents might have regarding the council's decision to table a resolution regarding the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response grant.
"I know there was a lot of dialogue tonight, and I know the public is watching and it'll be reported and there will be spins on it and turns on it," he said.
Following the City Council's vote to table the resolution that would lift the hiring freeze and allow the Jamestown Fire Department to hire eight additional firefighters, a large portion of the crowd, many of whom were fire department union members, left before the conclusion of the meeting. During his remarks, Dolce said he wished the union members had remained present for the remainder of the meeting to hear additional remarks regarding the resolution.
"We're trying to do something that hasn't been done in a long time, and I'm one of the very few if not the only one who has been around long enough to remember what it was like to have to lay public safety workers off and it's not pretty and I don't want to go through that again," he said. "It's not fair to them, for the families, it's not fair, it's not fair to the city, it's not fair to the departments, so I'd rather take the time to try to get it right and try to make it something that everybody can live with and everybody can be proud of and that will enhance the service if we can do it and we can do it in a cost effective way and not burden our taxpayers down the road."
Dolce explained that he would prefer to "dig a little further" into possible alternatives and ensure the City Council makes an informed decision rather than pass the resolution and have to determine what to do with the additional firefighters when the SAFER grant funding expires in the future.
"I don't want to completely lose the chance of getting the grant if this council chooses to go that direction, but on the other hand, I don't want to see it just fail because this is the way it is and it's not good enough yet or I don't want to see it just pass because we're under a timetable and we have to get it done," he said.
Dolce said the City Council is aware that the city faces a critical "situation" with its current emergency system that needs to be addressed. He added that the City Council's decision to purchase a second city ambulance is a "step in the right direction," adding that the city needs to quickly move forward with deploying a second ambulance to address the growing number of emergency calls in Jamestown that often requires mutual aid from volunteer fire departments.
With the resolution tabled until next month, Dolce expressed optimism that the City Council and the city administration will be able to "come to an agreement" regarding the proposal to hire additional firefighters. Dolce added that while some people may be impatient or frustrated with the City Council's decision, the decision to seek additional time to consider a way to pass a resolution that everyone can "live with," is typical of how the government process works.
Dolce thanked the city residents and firefighters for attending the meeting and expressing their opinions in a respectful manner.
"Many times, you see in public meetings in discourse when people don't agree and they have differences of opinions where you have shouting matches and you have people yelling and screaming," he said. "There was none of that tonight. I take pride in that as someone who sits in this chair, that over the years, all the difficult decisions that I've had to face, that we've had to face as a council and as a city, that we can at least come back and say that while we may not ever agree on all the issues and that we may vehemently oppose each other, we do it in a very professional and a very calm manner."
Dolce said that regardless of the disagreement, city officials respect each other's opinions and are willing to move forward and work together for the betterment of Jamestown. He added that he looks forward to "continued dialogue" regarding the SAFER grant in the coming weeks.