A lot depends on what action the [Deerfield Beach City] Commission takes on Sept. 14 at 9:30 a.m. at the public hearing to set the fire assessment fee. Without the $50 increase, there is a $3 million hole in the budget, and the contract with Hillsboro Beach would be reduced by $110,600.

The $500,000 revenue that is supposed to come from installation of red light cameras might never materialize since there are proposed class action suits against at least 16 local governments to put a stop to the red light traffic cameras.

This would be the perfect opportunity to bid the fishing pier and the restaurant as a package deal. We have 12 employees costing the city $368,169 a year for the operation of the pier. The income from that operation includes merchandise $123,000; admissions $237,000; and parking $142,000 — for an alleged profit of $133,831.

Without the $142,000 in parking fees, we now have a cost of $368,169 to earn $360,000 — putting the operation run by the city at a negative $8,169. It’s time to go out to bid.

Social Security recipients have been told there will be no cost of living raises for the next two years.

The same should hold true for uniform and non-uniform city of Deerfield Beach employees. Take a good look at what some of the members of the fire department are costing us. There are 134 members getting the 15 percent incentive for being paramedics.

Yet there are nine who collect the 15 percent and never go out on a call. In addition, five of those nine are in the DROP plan, which means they got a 9 percent bump in salary since they no longer had to contribute to their pension plan. That equates to a 24 percent salary increase plus whatever cost of living they were given in the salaries they were collecting. Stop telling the taxpayers to look at what other cities are doing. It is time to look at what the city of Deerfield can afford.

City financing should only extend to the 4th of July [celebration]. Originally, the Mango Festival was financed with private contributions. If the promoters of that and the other events want to proceed, they should find the money to finance them and not count on the taxpayers to foot the bill.

Jean M. Robb

Deerfield Beach