At Monday's City Council meeting, council voted against a referendum that would allow residents to decide whether they want to eliminate the city’s paid firefighters.

Some council members said Thursday there were not enough details about the proposal to make an informed decision. Other officials noted that the city needs the paid firefighters, especially after the nationally-recognized arson crisis that plagued the city for 18 months.

City Manager Harry Walker said the city could save $600,000 with the elimination of the paid firefighters.

As a resident of the City of Coatesville, are you in favor of eliminating the paid firefighters?

In a split vote Monday night, City Council approved the final 2010 budget at $9.9 million, which includes a cut in real estate taxes.

Councilman Ed Simpson argued that the reduction was done at the expense of the city's reserve trust fund. “It’s a tax cut but you’re substantiating it at the expense of the trust fund,” he said.

In recent months, Walker requested that City Council remove $1.5 million from the reserve trust fund to balance out finances for the end of this year and beginning of 2010. Council eventually approved Walker’s request. Of that $1.5 million, $1 million was used to balance the 2009 budget; the remaining $500,000 will be used in 2010.

“In the long run, people will move here and people will hopefully see it as a trend,” Walker argued.

Do you think the tax cut is being done at the expense of the reserve trust fund?