Philadelphia Fire Commissioner Harold B. Hairston said yesterday that he plans to retire at the end of next month, ending almost 12 years as head of a department that is now in the middle of a controversy over sharp cutbacks he has ordered in fire services.
Hairston, 64, a 40-year veteran of the department, is the first African American to be appointed city fire commissioner. He has served under two mayors.
Hairston cited his unusually long tenure in the job and the generous payment he is scheduled to get under the city's controversial Deferred Retirement Option Plan (DROP) as two reasons that he has decided to call it quits. Under DROP, Hairston - who signed up for the program last year - is scheduled to receive a lump-sum payment of $550,773. His payout would be the largest amount received by any of the more than 3,700 city employees who have indicated they would take advantage of the program.
"If I stayed, I'd be paying to work. That wouldn't be very smart," Hairston said last night.
The commissioner also noted that his predecessors had spent, on average, only four years on the job.
"I've been doing this 40 years. It's time to go," he said. Hairston said he planned to stay in the area, lie low for a little bit, and then look for another job.
City officials had no immediate comment on who would succeed Hairston.
Earlier this month, Hairston unveiled a plan to eliminate four engine and four ladder companies and add eight medic units.
The plan was in response to Mayor Street's request to cut $7 million to $10 million from the department's budget. The cutback would save an estimated $6.77 million without affecting public safety, Hairston said.
Critics say it would lengthen the department's response times and jeopardize the safety of firefighters and the public.
Hairston was named to head the department in 1992 by Mayor Edward G. Rendell. He had served as deputy commissioner. Street kept Hairston in the job when he took office in 2000.
A product of Philadelphia public schools, Hairston joined the department in 1964 and was promoted to lieutenant in 1971 and to captain in 1978. He was appointed battalion chief in 1981 and deputy chief in 1986. Along the way, he received two unit citations for lifesaving rescues.
Originally appointed with the support of the firefighters' union, Hairston came into conflict with the union over numerous issues, including health concerns facing response teams. Union officials have been among the strongest critics of his proposal to cut fire services to help the city's budget.
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