The Binghamton City Council failed to approve a plan to transfer $357,685 in federal funds to the city’s fire department last week. Mayor Jared Kraham held a press conference the following day, urging the council to allocate the money toward new firefighting vehicles and equipment.
The council was deadlocked in a 3-3 vote, as Councilwoman Kinya Middleton, who represents the second district, was not present at the meeting. Kraham said the money, provided by the Community Development Block Grant, came from unspent funding for older projects that would otherwise be “clawed back by the federal government.” He added that his office worked with the city’s fire chief and the Binghamton Professional Firefighters Association Local 729 to identify a funding source.
The money would be used to purchase two emergency response vehicles and turnout gear for firefighters to wear on duty.
“I believe that City Council should do the right thing and should fund this equipment,” Kraham said. “We cannot wait, we cannot let this money go to waste. It will be sitting in a bank account if they do not approve this funding.”
At the Aug. 27 council meeting, the clerk read a statement opposing Kraham’s plan written by Tarik Abdelazim, a Democrat who served as the city’s deputy mayor from 2006 to 2009. He argued that the fire department has received millions of dollars in local, state and federal funding in recent years and that it was “patently absurd” to accuse the legislative body of not supporting the fire department.
Robert Cavanaugh II, a Democrat who represents the third council district, spoke in support of the plan, saying that using the grant funds represents the quickest way to meet the fire department’s equipment needs and that additional Community Development Block Grant funding will still be available for future projects.
By contrast, Councilwoman Rebecca Rathmell, who represents the sixth district, was opposed to transferring the federal funds. She said every council member believes that new fire equipment is a “valid need,” but that the funding “is not an appropriate source” nor the only option for the equipment.
Rathmell also claimed the city is sitting on over $700,000 in unspent Community Development Block Grant funding.
“This is over $700K that — instead of being allocated to support affordable housing development or preservation efforts, which is the intended use of these federal grant dollars — has simply been left to sit,” Rathmell stated last week in a press release. “This missed opportunity to target critical housing assistance to underserved neighborhoods is itself unacceptable, but it also represents a pattern by Mayor Kraham of allowing these funds to accrue in order to plug his broken budget instead of allocating them to address the affordable housing crisis he claims to have made a priority.”
Councilman Nate Hotchkiss ‘12 also criticized the plan, saying it was “no way to manage a budget.”
In the press conference, Kraham said that the money “was not allocated for housing” but was unspent funds for administrative costs and salary lines that cannot be recouped. He also pointed to several ongoing construction projects, frequent public updates and investment into affordable housing under his administration.
The Binghamton Professional Firefighters Association supported Kraham’s proposal. Scott Johnson, the organization’s secretary, spoke at the mayor’s press conference and said using grant money would help in “easing the burden put on the city’s budget.”
Earlier this summer, the firefighters’ union endorsed Kraham’s reelection campaign.
Michael Dundon, the council president, voted in favor of transferring the funds, saying that while the Community Development Block Grant money should ideally be used to fund housing construction, he has a “lifelong track record” of supporting unions. Dundon, a union member himself, is the vice president of the Broome-Tioga Central Labor Council.
Kraham called for the council to call a special meeting and approve the funding plan.
“This funding that we’re providing to the fire department is about public safety,” Kraham said. “It’s about responding to 911 calls, making sure that our firefighters are safe, that their equipment is up to date.”
“I can’t think of a better priority that we have to spend our money and especially funding that will go away if we don’t repurpose it and use it for an eligible purpose,” he continued.