Lowell Firefighters and Citizens Respond to a Proposed Reduction in Firefighters.
As Kane sits in front of the Pine Street Fire House, he thinks about how the Fire Department and City Government came together to save the job positions of six firefighters. Kane is very happy that the fire house that serves the citizens of his neighborhood will be opened and staffed.
City Manager Tom Golden, the Mayor, and City Council are faced with the very difficult task of balancing the city budget. The rumor around town is lack of state funding to the cities has been a likely culprit. Anyway, when it was noted that 6 firefighters would be laid off, the city as a whole responded very passionately to save these jobs.
Kane himself went to the City Council meeting to learn the details of the decision. He occupied the space in the balcony with the Fire Department and noted the various ages of department members advocating to save the job position of the younger members.
During past negotiations the fire department secured a raise which was to go into effect in July. The City Government asked the department to postpone the increase to save these 6 job positions.
Kane was glad to see the department didn’t give up their well-deserved raise. However, the Department didn’t leave the Firefighters to be laid off hanging, they and the citizens came out in force to save their jobs.
Due to a significant budget deficit, the City of Lowell planned to layoff six firefighters. This reduction in the active force is in addition to not filling 13 vacancies. Kane was surprised by the news, especially on the heels of a major fire event in early May that resulted in damage to multiple homes in the Bridge Street area of Centerville.
Kane agreed that reducing the fire department by 15% seems like a risky endeavor for the community. Many taxpayers appreciate the importance of a quick response for medical emergencies and fire emergencies. Actually, Kane feels public safety is the number one budget item for himself and many citizens.
City Councilor Cory Robinson who serves the Centerville area has strongly come out against cuts to the fire department feeling a reduction in force compromises the safety of the community. In fact, Kane went on the road to learn what the community has to say about these cuts projected for July 1st, 2026. Kane thanked Cory Robinson for strongly advocating against a reduction in force at the Memorial Day Dedication.
The Professional Fire Fighters of Lowell (IAFF Local 853) on a recent Facebook Post argued the reduction in manning will risk public safety and lead to “Brownouts”. Kane learned that Brownouts are temporarily closing fire stations due to low staffing members. Kane thought it was interesting that minimum staffing for the City of Lowell Fire Department is 203 members.
The IAFF stated in the post that minimum manning was not being met with the proposed reduction. In fact, according to the IAFF minimum manning was decided in Superior Court a few years ago. Also, the practice of “Brownout” was ended by the City Council in 2022 after a fatal fire in 2021.
Kane learned that a reduction in staff leads to an increase in overtime to meet minimum manning requirements. Kane thought that this defeats the purpose of saving money and certainly puts community members at risk.
So, if you were wondering how this challenge was resolved it was communication. Kane learned at the City Council meeting that lack of meaningful communication on unhelpful social media was replaced with face-to-face communication and negotiations to save these firefighters’ positions. The fire Department will work to reduce overtime by implementing their well-formed plan and the city will not lay off the firefighters. Both parties hoped for future productive communication.
So, what did Kane take away from following this story? Well, the obvious is meeting the manning requirements for the safety of the city is of the upmost importance. However, the real take away is the seasoned firefighters on the job could have said something very individualistic like, “the layoff doesn’t affect me, I have 10 years on the job.
“But that is not what happened, they fought for their own without giving up what was meant for them, and that is the world Kane wants to live in. Caring for others! Go Lowell!
Best regards,
Woof
Kane Peaslee
Columnist Valley Patriot ◊