By Krystal Smalley
ksmalley@wbcowqel.com

The Bucyrus City Council approved a new contract with the firefighters’ union Tuesday night.

The three-year contract included a number of significant changes. Members of the Bucyrus Fire Department will see a 2-percent pay raise in 2015. There will be another 2-percent increase in 2016 and a 3-percent increase in pay in 2017.

As for new employees on the fire department, they received a cap on accumulated sick time as well as a residency restriction, which will require them to live in Crawford County.

The city and the union did agree to a slight increase in equipment allowance as well as a change in vacation dates for those with over 20 years on the department. The contract also limited the number of certificates in which firefighters can receive bonus pay to two.

Council passed three other pieces of legislation at Tuesday night’s meeting:
• Ordinance 51-2014 appropriated $20,000 for an insurance check deposit to the Derelict Building Liability Fund.
• Ordinance 52-2014 made transfers within the Law Director/Personal Services categories for year-end adjustments for office incidentals.
• Resolution 223-2014 authorized the Mayor to submit an application to the Local Government Innovation Fund for completion of a GIS System grant.

The next Finance Committee meeting has been scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on Dec. 4. A Traffic Commission meeting has been set for 10 a.m. on Dec. 19.

The Public Lands and Buildings Committee met directly after the City Council meeting to seek legislation for a lease agreement between the city and Bucyrus Theatre, Inc. in reference to the Schines Theater. The legislation will authorize the Service/Safety Director to enter into an agreement to lease the property from the theater group for $1 over a two-year period or until the deed is officially transferred over to the city. That transfer will not happen until the building has been demolished.

The Finance Committee had approved the legislation at a Nov. 20 pending the approval from the Public Lands and Buildings Committee. The city is currently awaiting final legislation approval from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, which is administering the funding.