Chief Don Adams, lef, and Board Chairman Jeff Berndt, talk after the special budget hearing held at East Lee County High School.

When the Lehigh Acres Fire and Rescue Board of Commissioners meets on July 14, they hope to have a report from a citizen’s “blue ribbon panel” with suggestions as what the fire district can do to keep from laying off firefighters because of a multi million shortfall in the budget due mainly from declining property values in Lehigh.

Fire Chief Don Adams was asked by the board of supervisors to consider resending planned layoffs until September. According to Florida statue, the board of fire commissioners can not direct the chief in personnel relations. He may choose to hire and fire at will.

Adams had taken action to lay off nine firefighters and two staff members a few weeks back when he said the money to pay for personnel is not available without having to go into the reserves of $11 million. He came up with a timetable and told approximately another 30 people that they would face layoffs this and next month, too.

Chief Adams agreed to end the layoffs after public pressure was put on him at a meeting on June 23 held at the East Lee County High School with about 100 people attending the special budget hearing. Absent from the board was Ralph Hemingway, who was ill.

The fire district was told in early June that revenues from real estate in Lehigh would drop drastically to almost 50 percent by Ken Wilkinson, the county’s property appraiser. He does not set the tax rate, but his department makes appraisals of the worth of property and passes it on the taxing districts such as the Lehigh Acres Fire Dept. so the board can decide whether or not to raise taxes. Lehigh was hit the hardest of the areas in Lee County because of its declining property values.

David Adams

Two weeks ago, the board voted to raise the millage rate to 3 mills per thousand dollars of property valuation. However, they can raise it to 3.5 mills before the budget is finalized on the last day of September. To go above the 3.5 millage rate, there would have to be a special referendum of the people of Lehigh which in Chief Adam’s opinion could cost as much as $160,000.

Several people from the public spoke at the June 23 meeting and all urged the fire board to ask the chief to stop the layoffs. Applause followed each speaker who came to the microphone. The commissioners met on the stage of the school while the 100 or so people sat midway back in the auditorium. Nobody but two media representatives sat in the front during the meeting.

As the public came forth to be heard, Dave Wheaton asked the board to allow the blue ribbon committee to be formed to help the fire department in its dilemma. Chief Adams said three people had already looked at the budget to see what could be trimmed to keep the department afloat and it came down to laying off personnel and the possible closing of two fire stations and even losing ambulance service in Lehigh and turning that over to the county.

After Wheaton spoke, the group applauded loudly.

Rick Anglickis, a member of the Lehigh Community Council, said when he was younger, it was the former Jaycees of Lehigh who had held a radio telethon to raise money for the first ambulance in Lehigh. He said he did not want to see the ambulances given over to Lee County.

Joel Guzman

“This (budget) could be done in a different way. The blue ribbon panel can come back and visit with plans for years ahead. Please, let some others help you. The panel may call for dramatic changes that would not endanger people in my community. Don’t rush to the tragic events of laying off firefighters,” Anglickis said.

Jeff Tuscan, a certified public accountant who owns his own firm in Fort Myers, which are auditors for the Fire District, presented a Power point presentation for the audience.

He reminded the audience that the property appraiser’s office had notified the fire chief that Lehigh would receive 46.9 percent less in taxes and by July 1, Wilson would come back with final figures, which could be less. Tuscan told the group that income for the fire department comes from ad valorem tax revenue, ambulance revenue and from the reserves fund. He also said that from 80 to 90 percent of costs to maintain the department is for firefighters’ salaries. He noted that the District can tax homes before the Homestead exemption is taken into consideration. However, he also gave illustrations of how values of homes have dropped and so will the taxes. In almost all cases, homeowners will be paying less in taxes than they did last year because the value of their homes has dropped drastically with the 3 millage rate increase in taxes.

He said the lack of tax revenue is not expected to change for a couple of years. He said that in 2008, the department received $20.3 million in ad valorem taxes. That dropped in 2009 to $16.5 million and next year, it will drop to $9.7 million. He also noted that about 12 percent of taxes are uncollectible.

“Obviously something has to change,” Tuscan said. He noted the difficulty, too, of the rising cost of fuel for equipment, increased cost of electricity and supplies.

“You must budget 2010 with 2011 and 2013 in mind, too,” he said.

Community Council President Damon Shelor reminded the board that the Council was offering help with a blue ribbon panel that may come up with “possible solutions.”

Jeff Berndt, chairman of the Fire Board, told Shelor that the board would welcome such an independent group. We will provide you with all the information you need.”

Shelor said the Lehigh Chamber of Commerce and the Community Council had asked Bruce Boyd, Laurie Jerriey, Rich Anglickis and Michael Wesner to serve on the panel. Others who since have joined the blue ribbon panel include Jeff McMullen, the CFO at Lehigh Regional Medical Center, Patti Wheaton, and Anita Kressel, the finance person a the fire department. Already, the blue ribbon panel has met several times and the chief has sat in on the meetings.

The fire board declined to appoint a member but said the group could ask a member of the union to be a part of the deliberations.

After pleas of “stop the layoffs” was heard over and over, fire board members Berndt, Joel Guzman, David Adams and Julie Barrett agreed to appeal to the chief to stop the layoffs. The group broke out in thunderous applause.

A union representative said there was a possibility of a SAFER grant for the fire department, that legislation was on President Obama’s desk to sign. He said Lehigh would be the first to get funding from the grant. But when asked by Commissioner Julie Barrett how much the grant may be, the union rep was unable to say for sure. He did say he thought it could be as much as $36,000 per employee in the department. Toward the end of the meeting, it was Commissioner David Adams who suggested the layoffs be held off until October. He said that included the 11 that have been told they were the first to be laid off.

Joel Guzman, Berndt and Barrett agreed to the suggestion by Adams.

“If they (the blue ribbon panel) can find solutions, that will be a good thing,” he said.