Priorities Are All Screwed Up
THE MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, CITY COUNCIL along with their erratic mayor are finding it difficult to ignore their fire department "problem" that they created themselves. As stations are being closed on rotation and layoffs continue, fires are still occurring and response times are increasing. Just last week Firegeezer posted HERE the double-talking going on such as the mayor complaining that ten FF's "called in sick" one day when they were actually off on injury leave. If you missed that posting of ours, be sure you click over to it and see the video of the Local president firing back at the mayor and council.
Now the spotlight is turned onto the city government again as ten more FF's were notified that they would be laid off next month. The city council attempted to shift funds from unfilled positions in other agencies to keep the FF's on duty, but the mayor promptly vetoed the measure. But on the same day his office issued a job opening / hiring announcement for a "Bicycle and Pedestrian Coordinator" position that pays up to $84,000 annually. That was just one of several job openings advertised including a "Manager of Intellectual Properties" for the police department (which has suffered layoffs as well). The mayor tried to justify the bicycle coordinator by saying it will make the city safer for cyclists and save lives. (Firefighters don't do that? …. ed.)
Mayor Rybak (with arm raised), the cyclists friend.
A group of firefighters confronted the mayor at the State Fair the other day about this claim and he tried to duck it. Meanwhile, the city council is being hammered by the local tv stations and the city's leading newspaper to reverse the plan to layoff more firefighters. The president of the city council has come up with a plan again and this video report from KSTP-TV covers both this new plan and the FF's vs. mayor showdown at the State Fair:
Stay tuned. This ain't over yet.
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Also on FireGeezer…
- Minneapolis Decimates FD. Local’s Pres. Fires Back – August 22, 2011
- Minneapolis Set To Whack Fire Department – July 28, 2011
- Save Money – Play Football (Commentary) – October 6, 2011
