The City of Gilroy was awarded a $2.3 million fire department
staffing grant, but whether the council will vote to accept the
award remains to be seen.
The City of Gilroy was awarded a $2.3 million fire department staffing grant, but whether the council will vote to accept the award remains to be seen.
Awarded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the grant will fund six firefighter positions, said City Administrator Tom Haglund, who received the news Monday.
“It would likely help us save on overtime and achieve a higher level of service to the community,” he said.
But there’s a catch. The grant only lasts for two years.
“We would have to find our own money after two years,” said Haglund, who expects to bring the matter before the city council next month.
Mayor Al Pinheiro said he looks forward to receiving more information before making his decision.
The council directed city staff to apply for the grant several months ago when the Gilroy Fire Department were required to staff each engine with four firefighters. Now that the department staffs each engine with three, circumstances have changed, Pinheiro said.
“It behooves the council to get the full report and weigh the pros and cons before making a decision,” he said.
The last thing the council would want to do is hire the firefighters with grant money, then find that they don’t have the funds to sustain those positions after two years, Pinheiro said. The city is not currently in a place to pull $2 million out of its general fund to continue funding those positions, he said.
Look for more on this story in Tuesday’s edition.
