It seems after being publicly humiliated at a recent Council meeting Marti Emerald is taking steps to reach out to the community and push her message of, umm…well, I’ll try and get back to you when I find it.
She has reinvented her monthly community newsletter although spelling seems to not be a concern. “Subject: We need to restore borwned-out fire engines.” You’d think with a paid staff someone knows how to spell brown.
It opens with: “Welcome to the first edition of a new, streamlined version of The Emerald News. This new format allows me to share with you the very latest news regarding public safety, jobs, and how I’m working with my Team-7 Troubleshooters to restore your trust in our City government.”
Well I’m including the full section about the fire station Brownouts so you can decide for yourself if there is either the latest news or information on how she is working with her “troubleshooters”, enjoy:
Fire Station Staffing Issues
This is a story which seems to change daily.
As the Chair of the Public Safety and Neighborhood Services (PS&NS) Committee, Councilmember Marti Emerald said, “You have my promise to continue to work to restore fire station staffing and end the brown-outs.”
Even though the Council is on legislative recess during the month of August, Councilmember Emerald knows this emergency takes no break. She wants to assure everyone that the work on this very important safety issue will continue through the month of August and beyond, if necessary, until it is resolved. Brown-outs affect everyone living in San Diego. The plan to take as many as eight of the City’s 47 fire engines out of service at designated stations on a rotating basis began in February as a cost-cutting measure. The idling of these engines will save the City an estimated $11.5 million annually. At Councilmember Emerald’s request, San Diego Fire-Rescue Chief Javier Mainar updates the PS&NS Committee every month regarding how staffing shortages are effecting emergency response times. Councilmember Emerald will continue to identify funds to return the engines to service.
At this point I know there are brownouts, I know Marti gets briefed on the subject, and I know she is trying to do something. Honestly, she would have been better off saying she is going on vacation with the rest of the Council, at least then she’d have an excuse for not doing anything.
Also, I hope she brings this blog post up next time she is on the radio, that is if the KPBS staff will ever have her back after her interview and post-interview behavior!