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VILLAGE OF ST. ANTHONY <br /> - � COUNCIL MINUTES <br /> Special Meeting January 31 , 1969 <br /> The meeting was called to order by the Mayor at 1 :00 o'-lock P. M. <br /> The following were present at roll calls O 'Connor, Crouse, Emond, Dougherty. <br /> Absent: Levandowski . <br /> Also presents Raymond Haik, Village Attorney <br /> John Pri nton, Village Manager <br /> The Village Manager reported that mailed notice was delivered to the Central Avenue <br /> Post Office at 2: 15 P. li. January 30, 1969. The notices were sent by Special Deliv- <br /> ery. In addition, all members were called starting at 8:00 A. M. January 31 , 1969 <br /> and all members reached by 9:15 A. M. <br /> Motion by Councilman Crouse and seconded by Councilman Emond that the rules be <br /> waived and that Ordinance 1969-2 be readopted. <br /> Mr. Fred Memer placed an objection to action taken at this meeting as not being <br /> adequate notice. He stated the place and time not mentioned in the notice. <br /> Councilman Dougherty asked to be recognized. He made the following statements <br /> The Volunteer Firemen served the Village for 12 years or more and have done an <br /> • excellent job. They are recognized as being competent. The Volunteer Department <br /> has projected salary costs of $12,000 and insurance costs. The present situation <br /> is the outgrowth of a series of ultimatums that have reached an empasse. He feels <br /> that the Council does not feel that the Volunteer Department has not done a satisfy- <br /> ing job. They have 300 years of experience and 300 hours of training. He feels <br /> they are professional . Many Communities have Volunteer Departments. Many are <br /> larger than St. Anthony. The spirit of the Department has been excellent in the <br /> past. The Volunteers have fostered a community in St. Anthony. They outfitted <br /> the rescue van and built a work shop. The Volunteers have served St. Anthony well. <br /> He feels the Council is throwing out benefits of the Department. He acknowledged <br /> the new department could be adequate in time, but we could have problems with <br /> auxiliary of police and maintenance departments. There have been instances where <br /> police have neglected police duty. The State of Michigan prohibits such a Depart- <br /> ment. He stated that he felt the Council by this meeting was not carrying out a <br /> commitment by the Mayor, that the meeting should be in larger quarters. He felt <br /> the notice sent to residents was misleading. There was no projection of salary <br /> increases for the permanent department. He feels the comparison was distorted. <br /> The Village Manager has inquired of other communities as to hiring a fire chief <br /> to serve the department. Councilman Crouse asked the Village Manager if this was <br /> true and the Village Manager replied that it was not. Councilman Dougherty stated <br /> that the report was possibly distorted. He stated that the use of surplus liquor <br /> store funds would not allow for temporary financing of improvements, and that the <br /> improvement of Highway #8 may have impact on earnings. We have a $80,000 system <br /> compared to a $30,000 system with the potential of a greater size department with <br /> increased demands of employees. The new department wilt join unions and make <br /> demands on the Council . The Volunteers have not made demands up to this year. The <br /> on call costs of other towns show greater salaries for Volunteers. Columbia Heights <br /> pays $8,000 to firemen. The Village does not have salary projection for the new <br /> department. The Council has not provided for costs in the budget to this date. <br /> The Council should take due consideration of <br />