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The Township government may step in if a contract impasse between East Franklin Volunteer Fire Department and the Fire District 3 Commissioners is not broken by the new September 30 deadline.

That was the word on August 13 from Mayor Phil Kramer, who showed up to the Commissioners regular monthly meeting to weigh in on the controversy.

“I have to pledge to Franklin that I, if necessary, I will recommend to the rest of council and to the Township Manager that we use every legal tool in our toolbox to ensure that the fire coverage of Franklin Township is not disrupted,” Kramer told the Commissioners during the meeting’s public portion.

Later in the meeting, Kramer was backed up by Township Councilman Carl Wright (D-Ward 4).

“As the mayor stated, that toolbox has a lot of tools,” he said.

There was no response from the Commissioners to either statement.

The fire company and the Commissioners have been deadlocked in a contract dispute for months. The two entities enter into contracts every year, through which the Fire District stores its fire apparatus in the fire department’s fire house – which is owned by the department – allowing the department to fight fires in the district and elsewhere.

Commission Chairman Sherrod Middleton has threatened to remove all of the district’s apparatus from the fire house – thereby shutting it down – and replacing the volunteer firefighters with paid, per diem firefighters, if the contract is not signed.

The other fire department in the district, Community, has signed the contract.

At issue are a number of new stipulations in the proposed 2024 contract to which EFVFD Chief Dan Krushinski and his officers object.

Krushinski has refused to sign the contract, which expired in April.

The contract has a built-in two-month extension, which was continued in June until August 31.

At the August 13 meeting, the Commissioners voted to further extend the contract to September 30.

This, according to Middleton, was to allow for time for the Commission’s new attorney, Greg Pasquale, to speak with the EFVFD attorney about the contract.

Kramer had two other suggestions to end the dispute.

“You can solve this quickly between the sides of the disagreement,” he said. “You might even be able to do that tonight if you really put your mind to it. If you can’t solve it, go to an arbitrator. I’ve information … about a judge, a retired judge, whose firm has represented fire districts. So he knows the countryside. He knows what he’s dealing with, and he’s a retired judge. So I think he can be fair. If you go to an arbitrator, you’ll get it figured out in a matter of a few days.”

“Or continue the contract until you come to a resolution,” Kramer said. “We go three years before we sign a contract with our police department sometimes. We just continue on the old contract until we come to a resolution.”

“It’s just not acceptable to allow a fire company to be shut down,” Kramer said. “Public safety comes above all else.”

Kramer said he would not “take sides” in the dispute.

“All I care about, the side that I’m on, is the side of the people,” he said. “That they don’t lose fire coverage. That’s not just 30,000 people in the district, but the people of all of Franklin and all of the neighboring towns.”

“I am told that the system, which is dependent on volunteers, cannot take the stress of losing a company, especially a company that has the performance that East Franklin does,” he said. “So that is just not acceptable.”

Krushinski told the Commissioners that a meeting he was promised with vice-chairman Ken Reid never materialized.

“Myself and ex-chief Alan Lattanzio sat down with Commissioner (Janet) Natal and Commissioner (Fatiima) Braxton for almost two hours and went over stuff in the contract, what was in the contract, what we thought would be something to work out, change things, wording, stuff like that,” Krushinski said. “When Alan and I left, we thought we were in a good place. About a week later I got a text message from Commissioner Natal to reach out to Commissioner Reid and that there would be no special meeting that we were promised.”

Also weighing in during the meeting was retired Franklin Township Police Det. Pat Colligan, who said he was “stunned” that the contract was still being discussed.

“There’s negotiations. And when you stand firm and you don’t want to negotiate, nothing happens. And here we are,” said Colligan, who was also the long-time head of the state PBA.

“These fire district meetings should be empty until the voting comes,” he said. “And I implore your new counselor to do a little research here, talk to the prior counsel because he left because they didn’t take very good advice.”

“I’ve been a detective for 32 years,” Colligan said. “I can see through this like a pane of glass. Not only the residents, every one of my officers is going to be responding to a call in this district with less than half of the firefighters are in grave danger. And that’s what I’m here for tonight. The taxpayers, the finances, which is stunning, and the safety of the residents.”

Several residents also spoke during the meeting.

James Baldwin, of Rodney Avenue, said the fire house’s presence in their neighborhood made the area safer.

“There’s no doubt in my mind that there is less crime in my immediate area because of their presence,” he said. “The playground and park right next to it is safer and cleaner because of their presence. They’re not just protecting my home and my neighborhood, but they also are protecting my property better.”

“I can promise you if that station shuts down, my neighbors and I will make the rest of your term harder, and we’re coming for your seats next time,” Baldwin said.

Anthony Fattori of Conerly Road told the Commissioners they also have to be mindful that school will be starting up in September.

“There are four elementary schools and one middle school that cover this district,” he said. “I can tell you right now that from my experience dealing with PTO parents, just because I go to the PTO meetings, if they If they did find out that East Franklin is going to shut down and the possibility that coverage is not going to be covered for those four elementary schools and the middle school, there’s going to be an issue.”

“So if you’re going to wait until the end of September to resolve this contract, I guarantee you … there’s not going to be any firemen in here anymore. It’s going to be residents of the district that are going to show up,” Fattori said.

The Commission’s next scheduled meeting is set for 7 p.m. September 10 at the district headquarters, 138 Shevchenko Ave.