City Island Hears Vacca Grill Fire Commissioner
Scoppetta Refuses To Budge; Closure Plan Enacted
YourNabe.com 1/22/09
City
Islanders went to City Hall on Friday, January
16 to a City Council Fire and Criminal Justice
committee hearing to express their outrage at
the FDNY’s plan to close Ladder Company 53 on
City Island at night.
However, despite intense questioning from
Councilman Jimmy Vacca, FDNY commissioner
Nicolas Scoppetta did not budge on his closure
plan, and now Ladder 53 is closed at night.
However, scattered coverage at night at Ladder
53, at 169-71 Schofield Street, will be provided
due to a surplus of about 100 to 200 more FDNY
firefighters than are needed in New York City.
As attrition and retirement reduces the total
number of firefighters Ladder 53 will be staffed
at night less and less, and finally, not at all.
The FDNY is not expected to do any additional
hiring for the next two years.
“We had a hearing on Friday which was very
contentious,” Vacca said. “We had a bus from
City Island with residents, and the hearing
started at 1 p.m. and lasted until about 5:30
p.m.”Vacca questioned Scoppetta, who agreed with
many of the points raised, including the fact
that the closure of Ladder 53 between the hours
of 6 p.m. and 9 a.m. would double response time
on the island – making them more than twice the
city’s average. Nevertheless, Scoppetta stuck to
his decision.
“The city has an excess of 200
firefighters, and the administration has agreed to assign those
firefighters to the five different ladder and engine companies
that were closed due to the budget cuts,” Vacca said. “It is a
night to night situation. Obviously, this is unacceptable. We
are planning further action.”
Barbara Dolensek, a City Island resident who was at the hearing,
noted that Commissioner Scoppetta left the meeting after Vacca
and several other members of the City Council questioned him. At
one point, Vacca asked Scoppetta if police coverage should be
taken away from City Island because there is low crime.
It is the contention of the FDNY that because there are so few
runs out of Ladder Company 53, it will not greatly affect public
safety if closed at night. Islanders believe that due to the
island’s geographic isolation, safety will be greatly
compromised.
Scoppetta did not stay to listen to the testimony of City Island
residents, who were overwhelmingly opposed to the closure.
“Scoppetta left before we gave testimony – he only listened to
Councilman Vacca, as well as Councilman Avella of Queens,”
Dolensek said. “We were staffed last night and tonight – it is a
reprieve.”
Dolensek said that the fire department’s amount of surplus
firefighters depends on how many are out sick, on vacation, or
assigned elsewhere.
“We are now conducting a letter writing campaign [to Mayor
Bloomberg] – we are not getting equal rights as taxpayers,”
Dolensek said. “Clearly, the mayor is the only hope right now,
because he wants to get reelected.”
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