Saugus finance board recommends police, fire department hires, OT funds

SAUGUS – The Saugus Finance Committee voted Thursday night to recommend nearly $350,000 in warrant articles for the upcoming Special Town Meeting.Included in the warrant are articles seeking $43,000 to hire two police officers for six months, $44,000 for two additional firefighters for six months, $130,000 for firefighter overtime, $18,500 for a reverse 911 service and $7,600 for veterans services.?Police and fire are grossly inadequately staffed not only for public safety but staff safety,” said Town Administrator Scott Crabtree. “This would be fixing a problem instead of putting a Band-Aid on them and this will alleviate some of the expenses in the overtime account.”Finance Committee Vice Chairman Kenneth DePatto asked Crabtree if he will be able to sustain the new hires, to which Crabtree said, “I think we have to.”?I don?t think we have a choice,” said Crabtree. “Going into the next budget season we need to prioritize adequate staffing with police and fire ? We?re nowhere near where we were 10 years ago. Two guys won?t even put a dent in it.”Committee member Theresa Katsos said she wanted to see a limit on overtime if more men are added, but committee member Louis Rossi said he doesn?t think that could work.?With public safety, you can?t do something like that and serve the public,” said Rossi. “You never know what?s going to happen.”Crabtree said the firefighter overtime money will likely keep the Essex Street Fire Station opened until the end of January.The warrant also includes $35,000 for an Economic Development Coordinator/Grant Writer for six months.Crabtree said the $346,000 is an adjustment to the town budget and is made up of new growth, including local receipts like $400,000 in permitting fees for Walmart.?We were told $250,000 and that?s what we budgeted,” said Crabtree. “But the permits were more near the $400,000 rage ? This is something we can do every year, make adjustments to see where we are and not spend money we don?t have.”In other business, Library Director Diane Wallace said she is filing an application for a waiver today to maintain certification because the library was under-funded for FY13.?We?ll have to defend that with some documentation from this committee and Town Meeting in January,” said Wallace. “Last year they had 221 requests and granted all but one.”The Special Town Meeting is on Nov. 19.Matt Tempesta can be reached at [email protected].