Mediator talks with Brighton fire dispute parties

WASHINGTON — A negotiator hired by the city of Brighton has begun meetings with municipal officials, fire department volunteers and township trustees as the local governments attempt to de-escalate negotiations on the area’s fire protection.

The mediator, named Patrick Callahan, introduced himself to the parties on Tuesday, seeing trustees from Marion, Clay, Brighton and Dutch Creek townships at a public meeting, and in private talks with firefighters and city officials.

Callahan said it was an unusual case, due to the nature of the fire protection agreement, also known as a 28E agreement. The single document spells out terms for every city and township in the affected area, rather than each community making its own agreement.

"Most of the time, when I work with cities, each individual township has their own agreement with the city,“ he said. ”I have on occasion seen ones where, all of them are (under) one agreement, but the townships have all banded together to form a new entity … when it’s done with one, that’s what I typically see.“

At the public meeting, Callahan asked townships whether they truly needed a new agreement. The reply was a resounding yes.

Brighton Township Trustee Gordon Shelangoski said the current 28E didn’t give townships a say in the city’s fire account, despite the former providing roughly 85% of the funds. A 28E agreement is an operating agreement between two or more governmental entities.

“The city of Brighton has made decisions on their own that affected these folks and the townships, without contacting anyone,’” Shelangoski said. “It’s hard to trust people when they make decisions with your money, and your lives, without having some input.”

Complaints from the fire department in recent months cited the city’s decision to pay volunteers’ workers comp out of the fire budget rather than the general fund; a missed annual payment to the fire fund in 2021 by the city; as well as increasing increased utility rate charges for the fire station.

Shelangoski echoed those issues in his comments on the dispute, but acknowledged that the city was also in a difficult position.

“I’m not angry at them, I’m not trying to say they’re terrible people,” he said. “This isn’t a job they’re being paid for. They’re getting something, more than the firemen, but it’s still pretty much a volunteer to run for this. It’s a problem we have to work through on both sides, for that reason.”

Still, some trustees at the meeting said they struggled to take the city at its word in light of their recent disagreements.

“With all the things that have been happening, there’s a level of mistrust,” Clay Township Trustee Steve Roberts said. “We’ve tried, for a number of months, just to come to the city, and it’s been ignored … we can’t have that.”

Municipal officials have a different perspective. While Callahan’s municipal meetups on Tuesday were not open to the public, Brighton Mayor Melvin Rich has previously said complaints were not ignored, but responses were delayed by red tape and a history of bookkeeping errors in the city.

“We’ve been pretty beat up over it, because of things that people have done wrong in the past,” he said at a council meeting in November. “I’ve spent 60 years in this town and I’ve never seen nothing like this. We’re trying to correct it, and yet we’re getting kicked in the teeth.”

Other townships said they were more removed. Jerry Dunbar represented Dutch Creek Township at the meeting, of which only a small portion is covered by Brighton’s fire protection agreement.

“I hope everybody knows I’m not trying to take sides here,” he said. “Brighton is under a tight (budget) so they’re trying to find different ways. That doesn’t make it right, but I understand where they’re coming from … I hate to see something changed totally after all these years.”

Asked what could be done to improve their relationship with the city, trustees said they desperately wanted to see a new fire protection agreement, in line with a proposal they sent the city late last month.

“It works to make sure we’re not just kicking it down the road,” Shelangoski said. “It makes sure the next mayor, the next city council, has a set of rules to work with that meets everyone’s needs.”

As for the details of a new fire protection agreement, volunteer fire department member Mark Cobb read a prepared statement at the trustee meeting, urging townships to stick with their recently drafted 28E proposal, sent to the city of Brighton in late November, where it now awaits review.

"The document you have ratified is one we can and will work under,“ Cobb said. ”We respectfully ask you to be resolute in demanding a seat at the table, partial control of your funds, and the ability to help rectify the concerns of the volunteers by standing firm and demanding that the 28E you’ve worked on becomes the document that guides the operations of the Brighton Fire Department.“

That proposal, which the city has not yet discussed publicly, calls for the creation of a fire advisory board composed of township trustees, a city representative and the fire chief. The group would not only provide the city consultation on fire department issues, but would have a considerable say in disputes between the city and its department, including budget disputes.

The city is expected to turn down the proposal and make a counter offer, according to Washington County Attorney John Gish, who represents the townships.

“My previous discussion with the city’s attorney tells me that the city is not likely to take it with that paragraph,“ he said at the November meeting where trustees drafted their proposal. “But I’m happy to submit whatever we agree to today.”

Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com