W. Orange joins firefighting merger talks
State-funded study considers regional force with Orange, Montclair
BY KEVIN C. DILWORTH STAR-LEDGER STAFF
West
Orange and Orange are studying the possibility of merging their fire
departments, but when — and if — a regional fighting force ever becomes
a reality is up in the air.
Orange
Mayor Mims Hackett Jr. said he is hoping the neighboring Essex County
towns can have a regional department by July.
‘‘We’d
like to have it in the works, at least, by the end of this fiscal
year,’’ Hackett said in a recent interview.
But West Orange Mayor John McKeon is not making any predictions.
‘‘I
appreciate Mayor Hackett’s optimism, but when there is something as
important as public safety, I don’t want to set any artificial
deadlines as to when we’ll be in a position to make an informed
decision,’’ McKeon said.
If something
happens by next June, ‘‘so be it,’’ McKeon said. ‘‘If it takes extra
time, we’re going to do what we have to do, and do it right.’’
In
addition to their roles as mayors, McKeon and Hackett are Democratic
colleagues in the state Legislature, where attempts to reduce property
taxes have faltered.
Operating the
fire department is such a costly part of the city’s budget that Orange
can no longer afford, Hackett said, adding that the savings could
amount to as much as $3 million annually.
The
talks about regionalizing firefighting services between Orange and West
Orange began five months after the state Department of Community
Affairs awarded Montclair — Orange’s neighbor to the north — an $89,750
grant to study the possibility of joint fire-
services with
During
the course of studying a merger between Orange and Montclair, it made
sense to involve West Orange in the discussions, said Orange business
administrator Jewel Thompson-Chin.
Once
the study started to look along geographic lines, ‘‘Orange and West
Orange were, in theory, a better (geographic) fit than Montclair,’’
Thompson-Chin explained.
As it stands,
talks continue under the guidance of Orange and Montclair’s municipal
consultant, NJ Professional Management out of Cranford, she said.
An
application will be made to the state to add West Orange to a ‘‘Phase
2’’ of the study, with Montclair remaining as the lead agency for the
new grant, Thompson-Chin said.
‘‘West
Orange now sits in on the meetings,’’ Thompson-Chin said. ‘‘The next
step for us is to pursue an additional grant that specifically includes
West Orange.’’
Montclair Township
Manager Joseph Hartnett said release of the final report for the
Montclair-Orange study is imminent, probably
within a week. ‘‘We expect that study to
demonstrate that a fullscale merger of Montclair and Orange is not
practical, primarily because of geographic limitations,’’ Hartnett
said.
Montclair already has an
agreement to provide firefighting servi c e s t o G l e n R i d g e , i
t s 1.3-square-mile neighbor.
West
Orange Fire Chief Pete Smeraldo is quick to note that the talks to
merge departments are just that — talks.
‘‘We
made no commitment to the results of that study,’’ Smeraldo said. ‘‘We
haven’t begun to do any report. We’re looking to explore (options). We
are not anywhere near any decision. We have to seek information and
data and see if it makes sense.’’
Orange
fire union officials have chided Hackett for not including them in any
discussions, for failing to seek input from rank-and-file firefighters,
and for placing economic concerns ahead of the safety of residents and
the firefighters themselves.
‘‘It has
left a bad taste in everyone’s mouth,’’ Firefighter Elvin Padillo,
president of Orange’s Firemen’s Mutual Benevolent Association, said.
‘‘No one from Orange has included us in any talks. We’re not being told
anything. The only things we learn are what we read in the newspaper.’’
If a shared firefighting service ever
develops, there also are many unanswered questions about how fire
promotions, seniority and differing pay scales will be addressed, and
how volunteers would fit into the mix, Padillo said. ‘‘We are totally
in the dark.’’
Orange Fire Capt. John
Feeley, head of that city’s Fire Superior Officer’s Association,
agreed. ‘‘We are not being told anything,’’ Feeley said.
In
West Orange, however, Firefighter Angelo Tedesco, head of that
township’s Firemen’s Mutual Benevolent Association, a 5 6 - m e m b e r
r a n k - a n d - f i l e u n i o n , said McKeon has been upfront.
‘‘We’ve
been involved in most of the meetings,’’ Tedesco said of his group’s
experiences in West Orange. ‘‘We have had very open communications.’’
He declined to say anything more.
I n
a d d i t i o n t o e x p l o r i n g a merger, the Hackett
administration also hired Douglas Burris as Orange’s new $68,000-a-year
coordinator of volunteer firefighting services.
Burris
has been asked to help plan, organize, administer and coordinate a
program that will use volunteers to augment the firefighting services
of the paid firefighting force, if and when a volunteer effort ever
materializes.
Hackett has insisted
that volunteers would help bolster his city’s firefighting ranks
without putting an additional financial stranglehold on the municipal
budget.
Orange fire union officials
insist they are woefully undermanned, with just 67 people when the
department used to operate with 81.
However,
that figure of 81 is not documented anywhere and the municipal budget
allows for only 68 firefighters, according to civilian fire director
Allen Barnhardt.
Millburn Fire Chief
Michael Roberts, president of the Essex County Fire Chiefs Association,
has complained that staffing levels in Orange are well below industry
standards established by the National Fire Protection Association.
Bill
Lavin, president of the 5 , 5 0 0 - m e m b e r s t a t e F i r e f i g
h t e r s M u t u a l B e n e v o l e n t A s s o c i a t i o n based
in Rahway, cautioned that public safety cannot be compromised in an
effort to cut property taxes.
‘‘The
overriding concern of firefighters, whether they be from Orange,
Montclair or West Orange, is clearly, safe staffing and responsible
funding, by all cities involved,’’ Lavin said. ‘‘We are concerned that
the idea of consolidation is wrongfully viewed as a panacea, and as a
substitute for responsible government.’’
Amid
all the studies, questions and disputes, McKeon said he is cautiously
optimistic that his community and Orange will be able to one day create
a regionalized firefighting effort that involves both paid firefighters
and volunteers.
‘‘My parameters are
threefold though,’’ McKeon said. ‘‘If there is a regionalized fire
department, there can’t be any compromise on the safety of the people
we protect.
‘‘The two fire departments
must work hand-in-hand,’’ McKeon said. ‘‘The level of risk taken by
firefighters can’t be stretched. There can’t be any compromise.’’
Second,
‘‘currently uniformed employees cannot be negatively impacted,’’ McKeon
said. ‘‘I want to ensure that people are not going to have to take
salary cuts or lose their (state Department of Personnel/Civil Service)
status.’’
And last, ‘‘it must make
economic sense,’’ McKeon said. ‘‘I’m confident that these things can be
achieved. There is a good opportunity for it.’’
Kevin C. Dilworth may be reached at kdilworth@starledger.com or (973) 392-4143.
