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Firefighters urge council not to eliminate assistant chief role; ordinance on staffing sent back to committee
Summary
John Douglas, president of the Strongsville Firefighters Association, told council removing an assistant chief would shift many operational, safety and administrative duties and increase risk; Council placed Ordinance 2025132 on second reading and kept it in committee for further review.
Union leaders and council members clashed over a proposal to change the fire department’s authorized ranks and eliminate one assistant chief position as part of Ordinance 2025132. The council placed the ordinance on second reading and kept it in committee on Dec. 1 to allow further review.
John Douglas, president of the Strongsville Firefighters Association, detailed duties performed by the assistant chief role — including human-resources liaison work, records and facilities management, capital-project coordination, health-and-safety oversight, ADA compliance, risk management, purchasing, training, and incident records — and said redistributing those duties would overburden rank-and-file staff. "If we cannot afford one assistant fire chief position, then how can we afford to build a $10,000,000 fire station and outfit it with 12 more firefighters?" Douglas said, challenging the budgetary rationale given in agenda materials.
Council members indicated they wanted additional information and more time to consider the ordinance. Ms. Kozak, who introduced the item, said she supported placing it on second reading to allow more consideration. The clerk read the ordinance into the record and the council voted to keep the matter in committee rather than adopt it that night.
The issue will return for further council consideration after staff and committee review; no final change to the fire department’s authorized ranks was adopted Dec. 1.
