City council approves paying Mendon volunteer firefighters
April 21st, 2011 Posted in OpinionBy Teresa Nield
MENDON—In accordance with last month’s meeting, the Mendon City Council this week unanimously approved Fire Chief Ray Olsen’s proposal to pay the fire department’s volunteers.
Olsen presented a proposal in last month’s city council meeting that would allow him to pay Mendon’s volunteer firefighters. Olsen proposed giving volunteer EMTs and volunteer firemen $100 per year for each position held. Olsen also wants to pay an additional amount per hour worked, with the amount dependent upon the number of certifications each volunteer has completed.
Mayor Ed Buist said, “I feel very comfortable with it.”
“Something has to be done,” Councilman Jason Wooden said. “This is an attempt to revitalize, rejuvenate the fire department.”
The proposal will go into effect on July 1 at the start of the new fiscal year, and the council was reminded by the mayor that Olsen guaranteed he would stay inside his budget in order to pay the volunteers.
The council also unanimously passed a building moratorium in light of the city’s current situation that caused them to decide to abandon the new well they were drilling. Councilman Jon Hardman told the council the new well exceeds the state’s standards for arsenic. Although the water could be combined with cleaner water to comply with safe levels, it is not worth the 30 gallons of water per minute it was yielding. The moratorium is for the next six months and according to city clerk Pamela Coleman, was also in effect last year.
In other water-related business, the council also unanimously passed an ordinance that accepted the updated FEMA designed floodmaps. Hardman told the council passing the ordinance would allow people with homes in the flood zones to qualify for flood insurance.
In continuing with passing unanimously, the council also agreed to join the Cache County Unified Justice Court system that is currently being created and would stop requiring people to go to the district court for infractions, but instead to a branch location.
County Attorney James Swink presented the proposal to the council and told them several other small cities were considering joining as well, but Mendon would be the first to actually do so. According to the proposal, Mendon city will receive 50 percent of the revenue generated from justice court cases for Mendon residents. The proposal will become active Aug. 1 or as soon as the Unified Justice Court is operating.
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Tags: city council, fire department, Mendon, pay volunteers
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