Hillsboro council to hold special meeting

A special meeting of the Hillsboro City Council has been called to consider the mayor's recommendation that Hillsboro Fire and Rescue be dissolved and the city contract for services with the Paint Creek Joint EMS and Fire District. 

The meeting will be held Wednesday, June 27 at 6 p.m. in the Hillsboro Municipal Courtroom at the Highland County Justice Center. 

The purpose of the meeting will be:

1. An ordinance abolishing the fire department, laying off fire department employees and authorizing the mayor to contract for services with Paint Creek Joint EMS and Fire District.

2. Executive session to consider the following: 
a. Contract negotiations
b. Security issues.

Hillsboro City Council President Lee Koogler has said that if the legislation is officially considered before council, it will have three full readings and will not be considered as an emergency. 

In order to contract with the district, council would have to approve the contract, and it would have to be officially accepted by the fire district's board of trustees. The board's regular meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, June 26 at 7 p.m. at the fire station in Greenfield. 

Hillsboro Mayor Drew Hastings submitted the contract proposal to individual council and board of trustee members on Tuesday. The proposal recommends that the city contract with the Paint Creek Joint EMS and Fire District at $600,000 per year for three years, with the option to extend for one year. Hastings said that the agreement would save the city an estimated $1,540,000 "compared to continuing operation of the fire department with an estimated $899,648 deficit and a capital costs/benefits/administration (CBA) deficit of $450,000," for a total deficit of $1,348,648.

The contract, according to Hastings, is projected to save the city "more than $300,000 annually." 

Council member Pete Pence, who is chair of council's finance committee, said that he has a lot of questions before the proposal is officially considered, and that the people of Hillsboro need to weigh in on the matter. 

"We have the mayor's recommendation, and all of their points have been laid out," Pence said. "I know for myself, I have a lot of questions, and we need to give the citizens an opportunity to give their input. It's their fire department, and they need to have input on this decision."

Pence said that he wants to see a solution to the fire and EMS issue that is long-term and not a temporary fix. 

"It will be a difficult decision, and it will be difficult because of our position financially," Pence said. "I am interested in a long-term solution to this problem, not a Band-Aid. There have been Band-Aids put on it for too long, and here we are. We are at the crossroads. Which way is it going to go? I don't know. All we can do is get as much information as we can and try to make the best decision based on that information, and that is what we intend to do."  

An unofficial proposal to a solution on the fire and EMS contracts between the city and local townships was submitted earlier this month to the township trustees, council and the city by the Hillsboro Professional Firefighters IAFF Local 2972. The proposal starts at $40 per person for 2013 and increases to $50 per person through 2021.

Ryan Passet, secretary/treasurer of the Hillsboro chapter of the IAFF, created that proposal, and he said that it saves as much money as the city's proposal and allows Hillsboro to maintain the fire department. 

"This is not a union proposal or what I felt the budget should be. It was a proposal just to get people talking," Passet told The Highland County Press this week. "If council is not happy with it, say something to me and I will rework it in a different way that they would like. The way I see it, I do it on my days off. If the city's attorneys do it, then that's just going to cost the city more money." 

Passet said that his proposal also saved the city $300,000. 

"The intent of the information was to show that the city can provide affordable services to the townships. That is what the goal is," Passet said. "Both plans would save the city $300,000 a year. Their plan is three years, and ours is for nine years. What happens if at the end of three years it is costing the district more than they thought, and then they decide not to contact anymore? They won't have any options then. There are a lot of questions that need to be asked. Who is going to pay for the building insurance? Who is going to pay for the equipment insurance? The taxpayers have supported the fire department for more than 150 years. Obviously the firemen don't want to see the city get rid of the department. We're not going to argue that. We love our jobs and we love what we do. I don't think we need to get hung up on the $300,000 savings because our plan did the same thing."