Fire grant math doesn’t add up

By Barry Porterfield
Staff Writer

April 26, 2008 01:21 am

— The math just didn’t add up for some local city officials when it came to a federal grant meant to provide a big boost to Pauls Valley’s fire department.
The real reason for the reluctant rejection earlier this week by members of the PV City Council was the lengthy and pricey commitment needed if the city was going to benefit from the six-figure grant.
The grant already approved for Pauls Valley would have paid a portion of the wages and benefits for three new full-time firefighters over a five-year period.
As in past meetings PV Fire Chief Joe Eddy again stressed the importance of adding more firefighters.
“I don’t know what else I can say to stress how vital the need is for more personnel,” Eddy told the council.
It was the five-year chunk of time that proved to much of a commitment for the council.
Had they approved the grant the city would have committed to adding more local taxpayer funds to the project with each passing year.
“We have got so much money going out, got so many projects,” Vice Mayor Billy Riddle said about his concerns.
“Right now, looking over the budget, it’s tightening things down a little too much; more than I’m comfortable with,” he said.
“The first couple of years is great because the cost is minimal to us, but the last 2 1/2, three years, hits us pretty hard.”
The reference is to the city’s contribution starting slowly but growing much larger during the life of the project had it been approved.
The grant called for $271,500 in federal monies over the five-year period.
At the same time the city would have been required to commit just over $297,000.
The sticking point is the city’s contribution of only 10 percent the first year would have grown to 100 percent by the end.
“The only negative that I saw is tying up the city for five years,” Councilmen Gary Alfred said.
“I’ve tried to figure out how this could work.”
Riddle added he believes the rejection likely wouldn’t have a negative impact on future applications from PV as governmental agencies behind the grant should understand the tight budgets of municipalities.
“They’re going to understand that cities just can’t afford this,” Riddle said.