Fire budget raises firestorm in St. Paul

When a fire broke out at Casper's and Runyon's Nook restaurant early one morning last December, the firefighters that rolled up could only hope no one was trapped on the second floor.

Firefighter Bill Lambert said Wednesday the crew would have tried to evacuate people, but the better rescue rigs already were deployed to an industrial fire on University Avenue.

No one was trapped, but Lambert used the example after a City Hall budget hearing to explain how a $1 million cut to the agency will further strain pinched resources.

About six dozen firefighters wearing gold T-shirts with black "Saint Paul Fire Fighter" written on their backs settled in to hear Chief Tim Butler present the proposed 2012 budget developed with Mayor Chris Coleman.

Unlike Minneapolis, none of the roughly 400 firefighters in the department would be laid off. But round-the-clock staffing levels would drop from 118 to 113 and response times would increase, Butler said.

The chief told the council he could cut no more and a fix must be found in coming years. "I believe we're at rock bottom," he said.

The bulk of the budget cuts would come from the elimination of $400,000 in overtime that was used to keep stations fully staffed. Even with overtime money, some stations already can be "browned out," or closed for the day when there isn't sufficient staff to fill the rigs.

Council Member Pat Harris called the proposal "short-sighted and flawed" regardless of what the mayor ordered the chief to do. "I think my answer would have been, 'I can't do it. I can't do it without sacrificing public safety,'"

The firefighters in the audience applauded.

Harris suggested transferring right-of-way fees to plug the $1 million gap in the fire budget.

St. Paul Firefighters Local 21 offered ideas, including charging for event staffing that the department now does for free, assessing a $25-per-student fee at the seven private colleges in the city and expanding services to Maplewood or other neighboring cities, the cost of which would be more than covered by fees.

Council Member Dave Thune said the current budget proposal is "not acceptable." He noted the presence of the firefighters: "They're not here saying, 'Don't cut our jobs.' They're saying this will endanger our community; when they say that, it's real," he said.

The mayor's office, however, responded forcefully, saying the Fire Department makes up 25 percent of the city's general fund budget and at 2 percent took the third-smallest hit of any city agency.

Coleman's spokesman Richard Carlbom also disputed the firefighters' claim that they weren't asked for input. "We sent five total e-mails to every firefighter asking them to send ideas to the mayor or an anonymous site," Carlbom said.

The mayor also held a two-hour "open house" for city employees to stop and talk budget. "We didn't hear from any of the firefighters," Carlbom said.

Maximum levy set

In other action, the council unanimously agreed to set the city's maximum tax levy increase at the 6.5 percent proposed by the mayor. Council members, however, have repeatedly said they would like to lower the increase. The final budget will be adopted in December.