I was surprised and disappointed to read that Auburn City Manager Pat Finnigan is proposing to reopen contract negotiations to nullify an agreed on 2 percent increase in pay for our Auburn firefighters.

Firefighters do not make much money and taking away a 2 percent increase seems mean and deeply unfair. How can there be faith at the next collective bargaining table if one side makes a unilateral decision that it changed its mind about an important element of the contract that they signed and sealed about two months ago?

I understand that the staffing of firefighters is proposed to be cut from 14 firefighters on weekdays and 13 on weekends to 12 firefighters per shift at all times. This would very much compromise our safety, in my opinion.

How can the city justify spending money on a new hotel, parking garage and gutting out and tearing down buildings to make a new city hall when we can’t pay our public servants a decent wage?

I urge the city to reconsider balancing the city budget on the backs of our public safety personnel.

Evelyn Brown, Auburn