NORTON: City officials have been both on the defense and offense in trying to urge voters to approve an additional 4.6-mill, four-year levy for combined fire and emergency medical services. The levy on the March 6 ballot is shorter than previous proposals of five years. It would also replace four levies already on the books. City council has introduced a resolution assuring residents that the levy, if passed, would replace the older levies, two for fire and two for EMS. Those levies were passed in 1988 and 1995 and total 4.6 mills. They raise about $841,000 a year.The new levy would generate about $1.13 million annually and would cost the owner of a $100,000 home $140.88 a year.The last attempt to pass separate fire and EMS replacement levies failed Nov. 8.A week after the election the fire department laid off nine firefighters, leaving the department with 25 firefighters — only two are full time.“In order to stay within our budget we had to make further cuts, so on Jan. 1 the department stopped staffing the station after midnight,” fire Chief Mike Schultz said. “ But the firefighters came to me and said they couldn’t let the station go without being staffed and would do it for free. But because of liability they have to be on the clock to respond to calls.”Currently the part-time firefighters work on a voluntary basis after midnight and only get paid if they go out on a call.In an effort to address some negative rumors, fire officials invited residents to attend a town hall meeting Wednesday night. About 50 residents attended the two-hour meeting.Some in attendance wanted to know how much of the proposed new levy would be used to support the city’s new fire station.Finance Director John Moss said the fire station construction was financed through a 20-year loan and roughly 30 percent of the cost is being paid for through a levy passed in 2007.Schultz said the proposed levy would help pay for the daily operation of the station including salaries and utility expenses.The chief defended his department and cited the hard work to make improvements.He said in 2006 the Norton Fire Department ranked last in response time of all the Summit County fire departments with an average response time of 13 minutes. With a new average response time of two minutes and six seconds, Norton is now in the top five in the county.The number of calls the department has handled rose from 1,018 calls in 1995 to 1,425 in 2010.Schultz said with the increased call volume, which are mostly EMS runs, he would like to staff each of the shifts with six people so that three calls can be handled at the same time if needed.“We aren’t trying to shove this levy down people’s throats, we just want to explain why we need the money,” he said.If the levy fails, Schultz said, after 10 p.m. the city might have to rely on neighboring communities for help and have longer response times.One resident suggested firefighters should work eight-hour shifts, instead of 18. This way taxpayers wouldn’t have to pay the workers while they sleep. Schultz said residents need to remember that the firefighters are paid $16.12 an hour, but only work part time and do not receive benefits. “Everyone’s complaint is we are tight on money, well we all are. I understand that. I understand that there is never a good time to increase taxes,” Schultz said. “But residents also have to realize that these guys, like everyone else in the community, go to work every day to make a living, to make money to put food on their table and make their house payments. If they aren’t able to make the money here, they are going to go elsewhere and work. “The residents of the community are being provided with a full-time service with part-time people. We are providing the same services as communities that surround us who have multiple full-time guys.” Marilyn Miller can be reached at 330-996-3098 or mmiller@thebeaconjournal.com.