Firefighters union disrupts opening of new Tacony station in protest of Nutter
About 200 activists from Philadelphia's firefighters union disrupted a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the city's first new fire house in 15 years by staging a walkout as an opening prayer was being said and chanting their criticisms of Mayor Nutter outside the $6.7 million station in Tacony.
Firefighters union disrupts opening of new Tacony station in protest of Nutter
Sean Collins Walsh
About 200 activists from Philadelphia’s firefighters union disrupted a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the city’s first new fire house in 15 years by staging a walkout as an opening prayer was being said and chanting their criticisms of Mayor Nutter outside the $6.7 million station in Tacony.
Union representatives said they will begin collecting signatures for a petition to hold a recall election for the mayor, who has appealed a series of legal decisions that would award retroactive pay raises and other benefits to the firefighters, who have been working without a contract since 2009.
Nutter, Fire Commissioner Lloyd Ayers, Deputy Mayor Everett Gillison and even a Catholic priest had to raise their voices to be heard over the chants of "Re-call, re-call" and "bind-ing, bind-ing," the latter referring the binding arbitration awards that Nutter has twice appealed.
While opening new fire houses is something the union has been asking for, it protested the event to show their continued displeasure with Nutter's policies.
One carried a sign displaying an acronym for the mayor’s name: “No Good, Ugly, Two, Timing, Evil, Rat.”
After the event, Nutter said that he respected the firefighters’ 1st Amendment right to protest and that he wanted to celebrate the opening of the new station, at Magee and Keystone.
“It’s America. People have many opportunities and certainly a right to express themselves in a variety of fashions. The community folks may not have been too happy about their timing, given that they were celebrating their new station,” Nutter said. “I’m staying focused on doing my job each and every day and people will do whatever they said they’d do.”
Typical union thugs, they can't even spell. There's no "G" in Nutter.— LouDiamondPhillipsheadScrewdriver- Of course they stop being union thugs the minute your house is on fire or your family is in danger. And they would probebly still risk their lives trying to save your burning house knowing you hate them.
That's because many of them are heroes. You know, the opposite to what you are.— carl and sons - Volunteer fire fighters put out fires too, homeboy. — KYS24
- KYS24 - And you'll be the first one to sign up, right, homeboy? — Zero
- They know there isn't a "G" in Nutter. Try using your imagination, the "good" was most likely in lowe case letters. Ever heard of poetic license?— Getinline
- "lower"— Getinline
- Wow. The administration gives them one thing they wanted (a new station) and they simply ask for more. And then they wonder why the citizens grow tired of it.— citylumberjack
- The city didn't pay for the firehouse, the state and feds did because they had to demolish the old one for the new ramp on 95 that the feds and state wanted. — TheGreek1979
- Geek1979..the city didn't give them anything! They took the old one away to make way for a highway ramp. The neighborhood had NO fire protection close by. The money for this came from TAX paying citizens which all FF are and many live near that station. The State also helped pay for it...NUTTER has closed many companies thru-out the city..maybe near you — fbpdplt
- An arbitrator ruled in favor of the firefighters, the people that keep us safe, and Nutter thumbs his nose at it and refuses to honor it. I agree with the firefighters and I would sign a recall petition.— tony bell
- The City is POOR you idiot. The Arbitrator can say "5% salary increases" all he wants--if there is no money there is no money. That's the basis of Nutter's appeals. Moron FFs are upset at the size of their slice of the pie when THERE IS NO PIE! — KYS24
- The city is not poor. Millions $$$$$ available for pet projects ( Dilworth plaza- parks ) He has no problem paying 7000 police officers their raises — Sage Advice
- First, the City is, in fact, poor. Second, I'd rather have the City spend money redoing Dilworth Plaza than give FFs a 3% raise -- Dilworth Plaza not being the homeless-pee-pee capital of the City will be good for the City's economy. — KYS24
- Fifty million to rebuild Dilworth Plaza so a homeless man doesn't pee on City Hall's wall. The city is not poor just stupid — Sage Advice
- It's called investing in the economy of your City. City Hall is a national landmark -- how much money do you think we lose when tourists walk by and see a guy pooping in the water fountain? — KYS24
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David Gambacorta spent a small eternity writing about cops, drug dealers and serial killers. Now he’s writing about power and politics – which sometimes reminds him of the old crime beat. He joined the Daily News in 2005. And yes, he knows you’re not quite sure how to pronounce his last name. E-mail tips to gambacd@phillynews.com
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Jan Ransom, a native New Yorker, joined the Daily News in 2010 after graduating from Howard University. She has since written about the difficulty of filing police complaints, tax deadbeats and life after violent home invasions. She joined the Daily News City Hall Bureau in 2011 and has plunged headfirst into reporting on administration budget battles and City Council shenanigans. E-mail tips to ransomj@phillynews.com
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Sean Collins Walsh is from Bucks County and went to Northwestern University. He joined the Daily News copy desk in 2012 and now covers the Nutter administration. Before that, he interned at papers including The New York Times, The Dallas Morning News and The Seattle Times. E-mail tips to walshSE@phillynews.com
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