Fire union wants chief out
Concern expressed over Saratoga safety issues
SARATOGA
SPRINGS — Claiming their chief has “repeatedly failed to act in the interest of safety,” the Saratoga
Springs Professional
Fire Fighters Association unanimously approved a “no-confidence” vote against suspended Fire Chief
Joseph Dolan.
The vote, in which
90 percent of members participated, came after a special membership meeting of International Association of Fire Fighters, Local 343 on April 24. As part of the no-confidence vote, the members are asking Public Safety Commissioner James Montagnino to remove and replace Dolan.
“Our members’ concerns are not focused on a single incident – and its determination to take this significant step (is) based on the totality of decisions and actions that we believe are compromising the safety of our community, those who serve it and our collective confidence in Chief Dolan,” union President Joseph Brimhall said in a statement Friday.
In February, Montagnino suspended Dolan after receiving a complaint against the chief that said he “is being paid in two different places at the same time.” On Saturday, Montagnino said that city attorneys are working on their case regarding Dolan to be completed early next week.
Union leaders, however, said they have concerns about safety. For example, the early morning shootout on Broadway on Nov. 20, the union said, left responding firefighters “vulnerable to harm and experienced significant trauma.”
“The chief’s casual actions and concern for the well-being of those under his command eroded a growing lack of confidence in his leadership,” the union statement
▶
noted.
The Times Union was unable to reach Dolan for comment on Saturday.
In addition, union officials said in 2021, Dolan reduced the fire apparatus crew-member size from four to three. This, the union said, defies U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration standards. Prior to the change, union officials said, the city maintained a four-member crew for 32 years, a result of the city’s 1989 Jamesway department store fire. Montagnino said he has restored the fourmember crew.
Union officials also disagreed with Dolan’s proposal to also have Saratoga Springs EMS provide services to the town of Greenfield. That, they said, “would expose Saratoga Springs residents to unacceptable risk.” The plan was ultimately rejected.
Finally, union officials said that there is disagreement with how Dolan was handling EMS deployment, particularly regarding inter-facility transports and preparation for the Saratoga Race Course meet.
“In both cases, these policies were in conflict with the essential need for concurrent city-wide response during periods of peak demand for emergency services,” a statement read.
Dolan has been with the department since 1988, becoming chief in January 2019.
Dolan’s W2 forms, obtained through a Freedom of Information request, shows he was paid $140,007 in 2022. Another Freedom of Information request shows Dolan drove a city-owned 2022 Chevy Tahoe that cost $62,816 that the chief used as his personal vehicle. When asked if the car was to be used as such, Montagnino said “hell no.” He said it is a fly-car that is meant to be parked at the station for others to drive in emergencies.
Though suspended for potential conflicts of interest, Dolan’s 2023 ethics disclosure statement, also obtained by a Freedom of Information request, shows none. However, Montagnino pointed out that Dolan failed to disclose that he owns property in the city, which is one of the questions on the
form. He said he owns a home in Geyser Crest.
Since Dolan’s suspension, Assistant Chief Aaron Dyer has been serving as acting chief, a
move the union supports. On Saturday, Dyer said he didn’t want to comment on the vote.
“During the period that Assistant Chief Dyer has been in
interim command there has been a change in culture and morale throughout the Saratoga Springs Fire Department,” Brimhall said.