After a brief moment of silence in honor of Pearl Harbor, discussion at the Dec. 7 Fountain Hill Council meeting began anew over the 2016 budget.

“I’m on a fixed income … How are you going to afford it? We can’t afford it!” said E. J. Ammend from Tumbler Street.

Another speaker, a J. Reed from Clewell Street asked, “Are you going to raise taxes next year?”

A crowd had gathered at the meeting in response to a proposed 27 percent tax increase due to specific borough needs. But whether those “needs” necessitated an entire 27 percent became the focal point of complaints. Attendees were particularly concerned about a proposed new public works building.

A battle of words waged between council members Helen Halleman and Fred Capuano. Halleman spoke vehemently against the decision to raise taxes, but did not offer an alternative to raise needed money. Meanwhile, Capuano reluctantly defended the tax increase.

“You don’t want the taxes to go up, but have you asked why they’ve gone up?” Capuano stopped to ask.

Halleman responded instantly, “None of us can afford that. Shame on you.”

“So where is your solution to the income?” Capuano asked.

“St. Luke’s shouldn’t have offered that building,” responded Halleman referring to……..

Interrupted by more questions from the audience as to why the borough needed such a large building, Capuano said, “Everybody up here wants services. Something happens and they want the police to come. Snow falls, you want your streets plowed … The costs are going to go up … The only thing council can cut is its services.”

With charges hitting the community partially to fund the public works building, a construction project many object to, council members reminded the borough of its necessity. With the police department always flooding and the current building, in shambles, council members said they have little choice but to renovate or purchase the structure from St. Luke’s. It is council’s intention to bring all departments, fire, public works and police into one, sturdy structure in order to get “better bang for your buck” as Capuano put it.

“We’re going to use the entire building. It won’t be running over eight hours a day, like it was with St. Luke’s,” council president Larry Rapp confirmed, in an attempt to appease the audience.

Capuano continued his explanation of all the good a new or renovated building would do for the community and its service providers saying that in the long run, it would cut expenses immensely. Unfortunately, the long-term goal comes at a steep price for the borough at this time.

“You don’t live on a fixed income, Fred!” Halleman continued to shout throughout the meeting, forcing Rapp and other members to either stop mid-sentence or ask her to stop interrupting.

Halleman said she refused to take part in any additional expenses to Fountain Hill with its inhabitants already struggling to get by.

In the end, council passed the budget and confirmed that any money left over from construction would go toward paying the mortgage and that ultimately the millage would not go down.

With Halleman still red in the face and the taxpayers unsettled, Capuano, on his second to last meeting as a council member responded to ther audience.

“If you can’t pay that, you shouldn’t be where you are,” he said. “It’s not fair for those that work two jobs to cover your cost. Think about that the next time you talk about compassion for those that can’t afford it.”