Base plans cause contention (02/26/08)

DUNKIRK - Verbal sparks concerning a proposed combination fire station/ambulance base were in evidence at a city council meeting.

An apparent rift has surfaced between the Dunkirk volunteer firefighters association and Jay Emergency Medical Service officials over design issues for the new building, leading Dunkirk Mayor Ron Hunt to say he didn't want the community to lose $525,000 in state grant funds, and planning for the new building should proceed.

On Monday, several volunteer firefighters were emotional as they asked the city council for help with proposed plans for the fire station/ambulance base.

Jay County Commissioners recently were awarded a $525,000 state grant for construction of the new station in Dunkirk's Industrial Park. Construction work is not expected to start until May, Mayor Hunt said.

Representatives from Dunkirk and JEMS have been meeting to plan details of the station/base.

Several Dunkirk firefighters, including Jim Millikan, president of the volunteers' group, said Monday that the EMS personnel were making suggestions for the design of the building that the volunteers didn't like.

Millikan said there seemed to be a lack of cooperation and willingness to compromise about the layout of the new building on the part of EMS personnel. Millikan said that recent joint meetings on the topic have not gone well with EMS representatives not wanting to budge on several points the volunteers viewed as important.

"My point is - if we can't get along during the planning stages, how will we share that building?" Millikan said.

Dunkirk Fire Chief Steve Fields was not at Monday's council meeting. This morning Fields said, "We've attended a lot of meetings, and the volunteers have concerns but I'd rather not comment on them at the present time." Fields said that he was working to create the best facility that could satisfy all parties involved, given the limited amount of money available.

More meetings are scheduled on the subject, and "I'm just going to hold off a little bit to see what transpires," Fields said.

Fields added that he knew the volunteers were upset, and added: "The volunteers are the backbone of the fire department, and I have worked with them for 30 years."

JEMS director Teresa Foster-Geesaman said this morning that members of the volunteers have expressed complaints at previous meetings about the plans for the building, but she didn't want to comment on those complaints.

She said she is satisfied with the plans. "It's a very nice plan. I like it," she said, adding, "The new building will be nicer than either of the two present facilities, if we ever get into it."

One key point of contention is the volunteers' need for a location in the station to relax after fighting a fire.

Millikan said a training room has been proposed, but that EMS personnel want it strictly used for training purposes.

Fire Department Capt. Richard Long said he didn't want to see half a million dollars spent on a facility that won't work out.

After listening to the complaints and concerns of the volunteers, Hunt said that he didn't want to drop the grant. The mayor said that he believed the joint venture was workable. "They'll be running the EMS side and we'll be running our side," Hunt said.

Millikan said he foresaw "a lot of problems down the line."

Hunt responded that he was still in favor of the project, and "I think the building will look nice."

After the firefighters left the council chambers, Dunkirk resident Pam Bunch commented that she felt city leaders and the volunteers needed to discuss the situation further. "That needs to be settled," she said.

Hunt said that he had been under the impression that some compromises had been reached between the fire department and EMS. Hunt and Craig Faulkner, the councilman with responsibility for the fire department, said that additional meetings about the plans for the new building have already been scheduled. The opinions of the volunteers are very important to the council, Faulkner said.

In other business at Monday night's meeting, council members:

•Heard a report from councilman Tom Johnson about vandalism to the large ball diamond near Highland Avenue in Dunkirk City Park. He said that someone evidently drove a large truck through the diamond, leaving several ruts and an overall mess. Johnson asked that anyone with information about the incident call the police department.

•Listened to a request from Bunch that the city provide some items to be given away at the Dunkirk booth during the Jay County Chamber of Commerce Expo on March 8-9 at Jay County High School. Hunt agreed to provide several items such as pencils and litter bags to be given away to promote the city.

•Heard a request to have the city make arrangements to clear sidewalks in the downtown area after major snowstorms.

•Heard Dunkirk area resident Zach Crouch urge the city to make some changes concerning its animal control procedures.

Crouch said that he would be willing to keep stray cats and dogs on his farm until owners can be found for them, rather than just having them turned over for euthanasia.

He also said the current practice of leaving poison out for pigeons was bad for the environment and could affect other birds such as hawks.

[[In-content Ad]]