Town of Norwich signs delayed fire protection contract
NORWICH – Eight months post start date, Town of Norwich officials last week finally signed an agreement to receive – and pay for – fire and rescue services from the Norwich City Fire Department.
The delayed signing has been an issue of contention among city reps in recent months, some who argued that the town’s delinquent payment was an onus for city taxpayers and questioned whether the township should continue to get help from the fire department without ponying up their share of expenses.
The city had a similar issue with the Town of North Norwich, the other township it contracts with to provide fire protection, earlier this year. But that dispute was settled months ago.
Town of Norwich Deputy Superintendent Charles Brooks said the fire contract between the town and city, while vital to public safety, was delayed due to sticking points that town officials argued are too costly for their constituency.
“We approved it and signed it, and we’re paying for services from January to August, and we’ll pay every month thereafter,” Brooks said. “We’ve held it up because we were in negotiations for quite a while.”
The biggest hitch, he explained, is the town’s share of the $784,000 the city receives from intergovernmental charges for fire protection. The town levied its share of that expense against taxpayers in its 2017 annual budget.
“We’ve agreed to pay for 2017, but we’ll continue to negotiate for 2018 and 2019,” said Brooks, adding that town officials will push to keep expenses down for the duration of the three-year contract.
The operating budget has drastically increased for the Norwich Fire Department over the last year. In 2016, the department operated on a $1.54 million budget, but saw a nearly $150,000 increase for its 2017 budget of $1.68 million.
According to Norwich City Mayor Christine Carnrike, it’s day-to-day expenses that are climbing, which means higher contributions from both city and town taxpayers.
“We’re doing everything to cut costs where we can, but the cost of doing business always goes up. We can’t guarantee there won’t be another increase next year,” she said. “We’re hopeful, with changes in administrations, that we can work with [the town] going forward, and they know where we sit.”
Nevertheless, the mayor said the city wouldn’t refuse services if faced with the same circumstances next year, even if the town withheld their payment for services again. And that may create avenues for further negotiations between the town and the city.
“We would never not be good neighbors,” said Carnrike. “We would always provide the service.”
City and town officials expect to meet again in the coming weeks to negotiate fire protection for 2018. Brooks said the town intends to continue payment of services in month-to-month installments.
The delayed signing has been an issue of contention among city reps in recent months, some who argued that the town’s delinquent payment was an onus for city taxpayers and questioned whether the township should continue to get help from the fire department without ponying up their share of expenses.
The city had a similar issue with the Town of North Norwich, the other township it contracts with to provide fire protection, earlier this year. But that dispute was settled months ago.
Town of Norwich Deputy Superintendent Charles Brooks said the fire contract between the town and city, while vital to public safety, was delayed due to sticking points that town officials argued are too costly for their constituency.
“We approved it and signed it, and we’re paying for services from January to August, and we’ll pay every month thereafter,” Brooks said. “We’ve held it up because we were in negotiations for quite a while.”
The biggest hitch, he explained, is the town’s share of the $784,000 the city receives from intergovernmental charges for fire protection. The town levied its share of that expense against taxpayers in its 2017 annual budget.
“We’ve agreed to pay for 2017, but we’ll continue to negotiate for 2018 and 2019,” said Brooks, adding that town officials will push to keep expenses down for the duration of the three-year contract.
The operating budget has drastically increased for the Norwich Fire Department over the last year. In 2016, the department operated on a $1.54 million budget, but saw a nearly $150,000 increase for its 2017 budget of $1.68 million.
According to Norwich City Mayor Christine Carnrike, it’s day-to-day expenses that are climbing, which means higher contributions from both city and town taxpayers.
“We’re doing everything to cut costs where we can, but the cost of doing business always goes up. We can’t guarantee there won’t be another increase next year,” she said. “We’re hopeful, with changes in administrations, that we can work with [the town] going forward, and they know where we sit.”
Nevertheless, the mayor said the city wouldn’t refuse services if faced with the same circumstances next year, even if the town withheld their payment for services again. And that may create avenues for further negotiations between the town and the city.
“We would never not be good neighbors,” said Carnrike. “We would always provide the service.”
City and town officials expect to meet again in the coming weeks to negotiate fire protection for 2018. Brooks said the town intends to continue payment of services in month-to-month installments.
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