Different City, Similar Problems

Trenton is eight square miles compared to the 130 square miles of homes and buildings, many of them highrises towering above the ones in New Jersey’s capital city, that Sawyer was entrusted to protect as Philly fire commissioner.

But he said Trenton has some of the same big-city problems as the City of Brotherly Love, which also experienced “brownouts” when he was there.

Sawyer, who was Philly’s fire commissioner for two years through June 2016, was proudest of bringing an end to the forced manpower reductions that were employed to shave overtime spending.

These days, the same tactic is being floated in Trenton — and possible layoffs to a police force that still hasn’t recovered from mass layoffs that cut a third of its force in 2011 — as part of a budget struggle between Gusciora and the council, fueled by a controversial accelerated tax sale.

Union leaders came out in flocks at the last council meeting, chastising council members for voting it down.

Members of the legislative branch stood by their decision, saying they didn’t want to further impact city residents struggling to pay tax bills following a citywide reassessment that skyrocketed property taxes a couple years ago.

They’ve asked for a chance to finalize the budget before rushing to judgment believing there’s still time to change their minds about holding the accelerated tax sale.

Unlike the mayor who sought him out, Sawyer hasn’t hit the “panic button” or employed the same “scare tactics” Gusciora has been accused of using to try to get his way with council.

On the contrary, Sawyer has remained pragmatic about the budget process.

“They approve the budget, and they have to decide what they have to do,” he said about council. “Everything is on the table. I don’t know what the money looks like. Once I get the money dished out to me, I can do my job.”

The closest he came to criticizing those involved in the budget process was when he said it was misguided to think the fire department could do “more with less,” as it has been asked to do in past years.

“My firm belief is you can’t do more with less. The reality is you’re gonna do less with less,” he said.