City’s budget woes on a slow burn

There is no reason to applaud the resolution to the city’s fiscal crisis.

We’re still short one fire engine folks.

Journal Star: All fire stations to stay open

The nearly six-month battle over how to cut the Peoria Fire Department budget ended Monday with a decision to sideline one
engine and relocate one truck, leaving all stations open and staffed.

A firefighters’ union representative expressed mixed emotions over
the move, scheduled to take effect Thursday, while the fire chief
and city manager said the arrangement best suits the City Council’s
mandate to cut $600,000.

Station 3, located at 1204 W. Armstrong Ave., will lose its truck
but keep its engine under the deal. The truck will be moved to
Station 11, 1025 W. Florence Ave., which will lose its engine.

“This will permit us to keep all the stations opened and staffed,”
City Manager Randy Oliver announced during a press conference Monday.

Since July, the City Council has struggled with how to cut $600,000
- exactly the amount needed to hire 11 firefighters or staff one
fire station. For months now, the city had been staffing Fire
Station 11 by paying overtime.

Peoria has nearly doubled in geographic area, yet it being served by the same number of firefighters, engines and trucks.

This is not a good thing. Although this solution is superior to closing a fire station in any part of the city, it it vastly inferior to what should have been done: Cut spending on non-essential, yet politically popular spending.

The absolute perfect solution would have been to non make commitments on economic development spending that for the past 20 years has failed to generate true economic development. If the Civic Center, Campustown, MidTown Plaza, RecPlex, Riverfront, etc. had actually developed our economy we would have a better economy.

But we’re in debt.

Something’s got to give.

And it isn’t essential services.