Norwood Fire Chief Mike Howard has withdrawn his request for $90,200 to replace 20 computer workstations at the firehouse and has agreed with the $29,000 budget set by the town’s Computer/IT Director Mark Redlich for the fiscal year 2011 budget.
Howard and Redlich met last week and discussed the discrepancies between the two proposed budgets.
In a letter to the Selectmen dated Feb. 18, Howard wrote that Redlich “assured me he has covered the cost of our request for FY2011, and if necessary will complete our needs in FY2012 with an additional request.”
The $29,000 budgeted by Redlich for the computers in the fire station will go towards upgrades, not the brand new computer stations that Howard first wanted.
Selectmen Chair Bill Plasko said he saw Howard when he came out of the meeting with Redlich and said that Howard looked upbeat and was “confident that there will be no problem and that the fire department’s needs will be met.”
Redlich had told Town Manager John Carroll and the Selectmen that each computer should cost about $1,450, which would include a computer, a monitor, and Microsoft Office.
“The Chief is confident that they can go forward with Mr. Redlich’s recommendation,” Plasko said. “If they need more, Mr. Redlich knows what the fire department needs and has ways to provide it to them different from Chief Howard’s plan.”
source: wickedlocal.com
