eliminate Paid FD's

[Guest ff2]

Did not want to rob the fire thread,,The Binghamton fire this morning is a perfect example for not eliminating any paid FD's,I am not a paid FF,I'm a volunteer and know that vol's response times can be longer than a paid dept at most times time,if you live in a paid district,you can't know what the response time means til you're in these folks shoes,hopefully the youngster who was transported(per pressconnects report) to upstate survives,minutes or even seconds could be the difference between survival or death,,

[Guest City Taxpayer]

For the 12,956th time, changing the 10+ million dollar way that this City currently provides fire protection doesn't necessarily mean going volunteer. There are many hybrid options that can be investigated. BUT, they have to be investigated or Binghamton finds itself without the means to address other essential services. Does a $300,000 water deficit ring a bell?

 

A critical and substantial cost water shortfall discovered shortly after "negotiating" a sweetheart fire contract containing graduated salary raises of around 14%, continued built in overtime, out of title extra duty pay, ambulance duty pay, EMT extra duty pay, holiday pay, and a top heavy officer corp of 40 officers for 92 firefighters. Don't you think that somewhere in all those millions of dollars of unneeded benefits (that have nothing whatsoever to do with the efficient provision of fire protection) Ryan, Abdelazim, and Council could've found the needed deficit money?

And, it's a no win situation for them. Either they didn't see it coming (why?) or they did and irresponsibly continued on with their giveaway "negotiations". What's next? No money for street repair? Garbage collection reduced to once every two weeks?

 

The Ryan administration prides itself on change. Obviously they mean social change and social change only. When it come to finances, taxes, and the efficient provision of basic city services, they've proven themselves to be every other past administration. They place non performer patronage over performance, they've given/secreted raises to their ineffective inner circle of friends, they lack simple business foresight (water deficit), and now they continue with the same old sacred cow philosophy in dealing with a Fire Department that has the potential to be run at half of the present cost....without the loss of a single firefighter. So stop with the fear bull every time there's a fire. That's not what this is all about.

 

 

@

[Guest guest]

Well, it sure seems like they earned every penny this am on Eldredge St. PD too. Risking their lives to save others. You have no idea!