Coun. Denise Taylor brought forward a motion for the fire chief, and other department heads present, to let their staff know that no details regarding services have been decided.
She said rumours have been brought to her attention concerning the loss of fire trucks, members, and the department itself, but wanted to see chief Dwight Campbell reassure staff that these things haven’t been discussed.
“I question why this is an issue,” she said, adding that the MOU stipulates as a precondition that existing service levels within the former towns does not decrease.
Mayor Joe Gennoe said the MOU does address ‘rubber-tired’ vehicles; the document states that all parties agree to the development of a county-wide or area-specific prioritization model for capital projects, which includes rubber-tired assets.
It also addresses the assessment and possible closure of administrative buildings, public works facilities, and other surplus assets, but does not include fire departments in that list.
An examination of the capital and operational requirements of fire prevention, protection and inspection services is also mentioned in the MOU.
Campbell argued that he didn’t want to ‘butter’ up his staff now, and in two years, have them find out that their fears were coming true.
Coun. Simon Lawand said the concern comes from watching what has happened in Halifax from amalgamation with trucks relocating and substations closing.
“We’re not saying the decision has been made,” he said, adding that the fear is that history is going to repeat itself in Pictou County.
Taylor argued against that logic, stating that their area has a different structure, and that she would vote against losing their department if that option came to the table.
“We should’ve made it a precondition,” Gennoe added.
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