HUBBARD — A former public official took to the podium during a regular city council meeting to offer his take on why potentially moving the Eagle Joint Fire District outside the city would be detrimental.

Robert Paternity, a part-time city police officer and a former public safety director, deemed the idea of moving the EJFD’s fire building to a location in the township “insane.”

Paternity was referring to reports of a proposed new location for the fire district off Franklin Avenue in the township, behind Love’s Truck Stop, for which an individual is willing to donate land to the fire department to make it possible.

“The bottom line is, the bulk of the population of this area — both city and township — lives south of the railroad tracks,” Paternity said. “I have worked the road evenings when the north was blocked by a train and the west was blocked by a train.”

Paternity said Brookfield EMS was able to come down and serve the community in an emergency situation, coming north. Liberty Township can do the same, west to east, for the city’s population.

However, that ease of access changes when both sides of the train tracks are blocked, Paternity said.

“This idea is insane, from a law enforcement standpoint and safety service standpoint, insane; I am not opposed to having a substation north of the tracks,” Paternity said. “If you want to station a fire truck out there and an ambulance? Knock yourself out, no problem. But please don’t tell me this is a good idea when the bulk of the people that live in this community are south of the tracks.”

Paternity pointed to the number of calls the EJFD responds to, noting most to be south of the tracks.

“If I need an ambulance and I live north of the tracks, Brookfield Township was more than happy to come over; Sharon PD, more than happy to come over — also, with their fire department,” he said. “Liberty, no problem. But you have to take into consideration where the bulk of this community lives, and it’s definitely south and southwest of those railroad tracks.”

Questions about the potential move arose earlier in the meeting, as Councilman Mike Mogg, D-3rd Ward, mentioned it during his report on the fire district’s meeting.

He added that representatives from the county discussed extending a road from the back of Love’s, which would end just north of Mount Everett Road. Mogg said he was for the fire department building a new station, but talks were in the “very infancy stages.”

Councilwoman Robin Zambrini, D-2nd Ward, inquired about the fate of the current fire station if it were to be abandoned.

Mogg said they’ve had discussions about possibly housing one of the ambulances there.

RECORDING MEETINGS

During the meeting’s public comments portion, Michael Banic, a resident, noted that around a similar time last year, Mogg had asked about a camera purchased to broadcast meetings, which was subsequently asked about three more times.

Council president Bill Williams said he did not have an answer, but Michael Villano, the city’s auditor, confirmed it was purchased with COVID-19 funds, not American Rescue Plan funds.

Villano said the camera had arrived “quite some time” ago.

Banic asked when the camera would be installed and whether someone had made a decision not to install it, but Williams said the call wasn’t his to make.

“Seeing as we don’t have an IT department, the camera is sitting right back in this office; it’s been there for at least three years,” Williams said.