{"id":51202,"date":"2023-04-10T07:23:26","date_gmt":"2023-04-10T11:23:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/?p=51202"},"modified":"2023-04-10T07:23:26","modified_gmt":"2023-04-10T11:23:26","slug":"jamestown-city-council-to-resume-discussions-on-hiring-8-firefighters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/jamestown-city-council-to-resume-discussions-on-hiring-8-firefighters\/","title":{"rendered":"Jamestown City Council to Resume Discussions on Hiring 8 Firefighters"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Jamestown City Council<\/strong> will resume discussions over whether to use a federal grant to hire eight full-time firefighters.<\/p>\n

The positions would be funded by a three-year $1.8 million Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

City Council members have expressed concern that they’d be faced with having to lay-off the firefighters if the grant money is not renewed.<\/p>\n

Mayor Eddie Sundquist<\/strong> said while he understands that concern, this is an opportunity to make Jamestown safer, “As of right now, we close a fire station every shift. We still don’t have enough to run ambulances right now in the city. So, when you talk about being able to add on new fire fighters that are fully funded for three years by the Federal government – we’re talking salaries, benefits, all of those things – it’s a really unique opportunity for the city.”<\/p>\n

Sundquist said by hiring the eight positions, there would be enough to operate a second ambulance<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

City Council is expected to review a resolution to use $250,000 in American Rescue Plan<\/strong> funds to purchase that ambulance for the Fire Department.<\/p>\n

Sundquist said the city generated $300,000 from billing insurance in 2022 with running the first ambulance, “Now, I don’t think you’re going to double it when you add a second ambulance, but I think you’re going to get close to that and certainly add more revenue which will make up for the cost of adding new firefighters.”<\/p>\n

Council also will review a resolution to purchase splash pads<\/strong> from Aquatix by Landscape Structures, Inc.<\/strong> for $135,000. That funding, using American Rescue Plan monies, was approved at the March voting session.<\/p>\n

The discussion of hiring an Ombudsman in the Office of the Corporation Counsel is on the agenda again. This position is proposed to replace the Associate Corporation Counsel position, which is being vacated by Ben Haskin<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Council also will review an proposed amendment to the City Code<\/strong> regarding the Director of Public works position. The proposed amendment would eliminate the requirement that the DPW Director have a professional civil engineer certificate. According to the staff report, most of the people who have applied for the position have applicable experience, but do not maintain or have a professional engineer license. The City has had difficulty finding candidates to replace former DPW Director Jeff Lehman<\/strong>, who retired March 31 after serving in the position for 29 years. The DPW Director position is being filled on an interim basis by DPW Project Engineer Mark Roetzer<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Council will hear a presentation by New York State Climate Smart Communities<\/strong> Coordinator Sarah Swinko<\/strong>. This presentation will precede the review of a resolution for the City to adopt the New York State Climate Smart Communities pledge.<\/p>\n

According to the staff report, Climate Smart Communities<\/strong> (CSC) is a New York State program that helps local governments take action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to a changing climate. The program offers grants, rebates for electric vehicles, and free technical assistance. In order to take part in the program, a municipality must pass a resolution to become a Registered Climate Smart Community.<\/p>\n

The Housing Committee also will have a discussion on homeless shelters<\/strong>. That committee will meet at 6:45 p.m. with the other committees meeting at 7:00 p.m.<\/p>\n

The full council work session will take place at 7:30 p.m. in the Police Training Room on the fourth floor of City Hall. The public is welcome to attend all meetings with the work session being livestreamed on jamestownny.gov<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jamestown City Council will resume discussions over whether to use a federal grant to hire eight full-time firefighters. The positions would be funded by a three-year $1.8 million Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant. City Council members have expressed concern that they’d be faced with having to lay-off the firefighters if the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":11161,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[4],"tags":[10348,8421,12225,12808,7652,13152,11090,1122,9640,1204,13150,10387,12774,12902,13151,12901],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/jamestownseal-feature.png?fit=332%2C190&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3YlJ4-djQ","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":50171,"url":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/jamestown-awarded-safer-grant-to-hire-8-firefighters\/","url_meta":{"origin":51202,"position":0},"title":"Jamestown Awarded SAFER Grant to Hire 8 Firefighters","author":"WRFA Radio","date":"February 17, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"The City of Jamestown has been awarded a grant that will allow them to hire eight new firefighters. The $1,816,201 SAFER, or Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Program, grant comes from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The funds will fully cover the cost of the eight new\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Local News"","block_context":{"text":"Local News","link":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/category\/news\/local-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/jamestown-fire-department.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":52069,"url":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/jamestown-city-council-approves-hiring-eight-new-firefighters\/","url_meta":{"origin":51202,"position":1},"title":"Jamestown City Council Approves Hiring Eight New Firefighters","author":"WRFA Radio","date":"May 23, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Jamestown City Council has unanimously voted to lift a hiring freeze to hire eight new firefighters. The decision after two months of discussions drew applause from an audience mostly made up of members of the Jamestown Fire Department at Monday's meeting. The hiring is contingent on the Jamestown Professional Firefighters\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Local News"","block_context":{"text":"Local News","link":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/category\/news\/local-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/City-Council-5-22-23.jpg?fit=1000%2C750&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/City-Council-5-22-23.jpg?fit=1000%2C750&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/City-Council-5-22-23.jpg?fit=1000%2C750&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/City-Council-5-22-23.jpg?fit=1000%2C750&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":51514,"url":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/city-council-again-tables-resolution-to-hire-firefighters\/","url_meta":{"origin":51202,"position":2},"title":"City Council Again Tables Resolution to Hire Firefighters","author":"WRFA Radio","date":"April 25, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Jamestown City Council once again tabled a resolution to hire eight new firefighters at its voting session. Council member at large Jeff Russell made the motion, citing extenuating circumstances, following a lengthy discussion before a packed council chambers that included most of the members of the Jamestown Fire Department. Council\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Local News"","block_context":{"text":"Local News","link":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/category\/news\/local-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/Council-Fire-4-24-23.jpg?fit=1000%2C608&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/Council-Fire-4-24-23.jpg?fit=1000%2C608&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/Council-Fire-4-24-23.jpg?fit=1000%2C608&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/Council-Fire-4-24-23.jpg?fit=1000%2C608&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":52041,"url":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/jamestown-city-council-expected-to-finally-vote-on-hiring-firefighters\/","url_meta":{"origin":51202,"position":3},"title":"Jamestown City Council Expected to Finally Vote on Hiring Firefighters","author":"WRFA Radio","date":"May 22, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Jamestown City Council is expected to finally vote tonight on whether to hire eight new firefighters. Council tabled the resolution to lift the hiring freeze to hire the firefighters twice at voting sessions in March and April in order to have more discussion on the financial impact to the city.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Local News"","block_context":{"text":"Local News","link":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/category\/news\/local-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/City-Council-4-24-23.jpg?fit=1000%2C750&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/City-Council-4-24-23.jpg?fit=1000%2C750&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/City-Council-4-24-23.jpg?fit=1000%2C750&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/City-Council-4-24-23.jpg?fit=1000%2C750&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":50851,"url":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/jamestown-city-council-raises-questions-over-long-term-funding-for-grant-funded-firefighters\/","url_meta":{"origin":51202,"position":4},"title":"Jamestown City Council Raises Questions Over Long Term Funding for Grant Funded Firefighters","author":"WRFA Radio","date":"March 22, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Jamestown City Council members raised questions over long term funding for new firefighters from a federal grant. The City of Jamestown was awarded $1.8 million in funding through the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant Program that would allow the hiring of eight new firefighters. The grant\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Local News"","block_context":{"text":"Local News","link":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/category\/news\/local-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/Matt-Coon-City-Council-3-20-23.jpg?fit=792%2C613&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/Matt-Coon-City-Council-3-20-23.jpg?fit=792%2C613&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/Matt-Coon-City-Council-3-20-23.jpg?fit=792%2C613&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/Matt-Coon-City-Council-3-20-23.jpg?fit=792%2C613&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":51769,"url":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/city-council-resumes-discussions-on-hiring-firefighters-using-safer-grant\/","url_meta":{"origin":51202,"position":5},"title":"City Council Resumes Discussions on Hiring Firefighters Using SAFER Grant","author":"WRFA Radio","date":"May 8, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Jamestown City Council will start another month of discussions on whether to hire eight firefighters using $1.8 million in federal funds. Council is expected to have the opportunity to ask the Federal Emergency Management Agency questions about the grant funding at a special work session that's yet to be scheduled.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Local News"","block_context":{"text":"Local News","link":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/category\/news\/local-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wrfalp.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/JamestownSeal.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51202"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/22"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51202"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51202\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":51203,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51202\/revisions\/51203"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11161"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51202"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=51202"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wrfalp.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=51202"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}