Several Brownfield firefighters spoke out against changing from a 24/72 plan to a 24/48 plan at Thursday morning’s meeting. The Compensation Study done by Ray Associates had recommended the City go to the 24/48 plan.
The firefighters spoke out against the plan, citing the fact that there did not appear to be an economic benefit for the City even after changing the hours. They also pointed out that the 24/72 plan is popular with firefighters as it does give them additional time with family and to be able to take part in community activities.
Firefighter Jerry Worley stated, “I do not believe the numbers add up. We are already short staffed As this is shift work, it is different than other positions in the City. In my opinion, this change is the opposite of the desired result from the study.”
Firefighters Brit Shaw, Amber Kirk, Zach McGee, Oscar Hernandez and Fire Chief Dennis Rowe all spoke out against the recommended change.
Chief Rowe stated, “I just want to back up what everyone has said today. We are working 24 hour shifts. Our 24/72 shifts definitely attract quality firefighters. Changing our daily schedule will likely result in much more overtime, which could cost the City much more than it is right now.”
Councilman Eric Horton stated, “I want to recommend that we stay with the 24/72 shift. I commend these firefighters for coming in this morning and letting us know how you feel about this. We see these firefighters out and they know who we are. They are a part of the community. They do a great job.”
Mayor Tom Hesse stated, “I agree. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. I believe we need to keep it the way it is. We have a lot of veterans and a lot of knowledge in our fire department.”
Michelle Cooper made the motion to keep the shifts the same. Celso Duran seconded that motion. The motion did carry unanimously to the applause and cheers of those in the Council Chambers.
The Council denied a request from Enprotec Hibbs and Todd for additional professional services fees in the Downtown Revitalization Sidewalk Improvement project. EHT feels that they underbid the job, as costs have been more than they anticipated. The company was requesting around $13,000 additional funds. The Council felt they should stand by the contract and the request was denied.
The Council approved the Elections Office agreement for another year to have all City elections managed through the Terry County Elections Office.
The Council did agree to extend the Disaster Declaration again, in keeping with the Mayoral orders.
In announcements, Mayor Hesse announced that District 4 and District 5 positions and two At Large positions on the City Council would be coming up on the next election on May 2nd. Filing opens for these positions on January 13 and runs through February 3rd.
These positions are currently held by:
District 4 – Michelle Cooper (eligible to run again),
District 5 – Eric Horton (eligible to run again) and
At Large positions Chuck Nave, who cannot run again due to term limit restrictions, and
Isaiah Bautista, who was recently appointed to replace Tom Hesse when Hesse was elected Mayor in the November election.
To run for District 4 or 5, obviously, you must live in that district. To run for an At-Large position, you must be a citizen of the City of Brownfield. Call the City Hall if you have questions about your eligibility to run.
The Council’s next regularly scheduled meeting will be on Thursday, January 7, at 7:30 a.m.
