The fire chief was chosen from within the ranks. Why is it that now the firefighters are anti Gregg and not from the beginning when he was appointed? I believe this is all union motivated as Gray is trying to salvage the city expenses without raising taxes.
I am not a city resident, nor affiliated with Mayor Gray’s party however I do understand that unions are strangling cities, boroughs and townships with benefit packages and we the taxpayers have to anti-up.
Tim Gregg was heavily opposed by the rank and file firefighters when he was appointed by Rick Gray in 2006. He made it perfectly clear to the firefighters that he intended to use the position of fire chief as a stepping stone to further political ambitions.
The person who should have been named fire chief happens to have an (R) by his name on his voter registration card, so he wasn’t even considered. That person has served as a deputy chief in the city, holds a laundry list of certifications and qualifications in the fire service, has a degree in occupational safety, teaches at Millersville University as an associate professor and also has a law degree. He’s also respected by the firefighters because he’s competent and fair.
Tim Gregg is outclassed and outschooled by many members of the fire department. He got his position not through merit or qualification, but through politics. His actions prove where his loyalties are; not with the citizens of Lancaster or the firefighters who protect them, but with the party line at city hall.
As for your anti-union rhetoric, save it. It has been proven time and again that the city of Lancaster was put in its current financial position by glad-handing politicians who doled out taxpayer money as political favors (I’m looking at you Charlie Smithgall), the dubious tax exemptions of “non-profit” organizations who occupy 1/3 of the real estate in the city, and for poorly conceived “revitalization” schemes that find us borrowed to the hilt today. If Lancaster didn’t have to pay debt service on things like a $15 million dollar police station and subsidize the operations of churches and the county government, there would be plenty of money to adequately provide necessary services to the city.
Unions aren’t the problem. Free loaders hiding under the veil of “charities” and spineless, corrupt politicians are.