NILES, Ohio - There was a strong sense of frustration in Niles as council met for the first time after announcing the layoffs of three police officers and three firefighters.

Taxpayers packed Council Chambers, Wednesday evening. Many sounded off following comments by one fireman who listed examples of his dedication to the city and said he is among those laid off.

"Now that the city is on a budget crunch, I'm that guy again. I strongly advice against this. We need every one of the firefighters we have," said the firefighter.

Several people stood up in his support.

"Our police and fire department are essential. We need them. We can't lay them off," said one woman.

"My frustration is that you've come to the tax people to bail this city out, I just can’t believe you've got to do it to these guys and not get the money somewhere else," said one man.

As a result of the layoffs, the acting police chief presented to council a list of ten temporary operational changes.

Among them, the detective bureau will be limited to only serious felony or violent crimes.

There will be times when an officer cannot respond to minor reports, such as theft.

Also times where an officer may not be able to respond to a high risk call, until back up from a neighboring department arrives.

Mayor Thomas Scharnecchia told the crowd that he has finished a financial plan for the city, which will be presented to the State Auditor's Office for review. The mayor told 21 News he could not give specifics of the plan until he received the state auditor’s approval.

Other news facing the city is an opportunity for a Joint Economic Development District, or a JEDD, with Weathersfield Township.

If approved it could bring much needed revenue to the city but, not as soon as some would like.

"Installing the infrastructure, the remediation of the property, possible access roads, all of those come with the expense that would go to developing into the JEDD with Weathersfield," said Councilman and Chairman of the Finance Committee Barry Steffey.

Negotiations surrounding the potential deal are still in the works.

In the meantime, council is encourage residents to approve a half present income tax increase to restore their safety services.

Listed below are the operational changes being made by the Niles Police Department, effective February 10, 2016:

1. Two detectives are being reassigned to uniform patrol to replace the patrol positions of two laid off officers

    A. The Detective Division will now consist of one detective Captain and a detective, down from four total.
    B. Investigations by the Detective Bureau will be limited to only serious felony or violent crimes.
    C. Uniform patrol officers are now responsible with following up on misdemeanor crimes as best as staffing allows. These investigations were previously conducted by the Detective Bureau.

2. The Traffic Officer is reassigned to uniform patrol to replace the position of a laid off officer. The job functions of investigating hit skip crashes, junk vehicle complaints, and neighborhood traffic issues will no longer be performed. Where absolutely necessary, these duties will be investigated by a patrol officer.

3. Minimum patrol officer staffing will be reduced from four to three officers on the day and midnight shifts, thereby reducing the number of cruisers on patrol and available to answer calls for service.

4. The detective previously assigned to the Trumbull Ashtabula Group Drug Task Force (TAG) has been removed.

5. Narcotics and drug house investigations are suspended owing to lack of detective manpower. These types of complaints will now be referred to TAG or uniformed patrol.

6. The Niles Police Department Special Response Team (S.R.T.) which we have invested thousands of dollars into creating will be deactivated owing to lack of funds.

7. There will be times due to staffing cuts when a patrol car cannot be sent to take minor reports such as thefts, telephone harassment, identity theft, fraud reports, etc. Lobby hours will be established where victims of these crimes can come into the station to make their reports. Calls will only be referred to lobby hours if the call volume exceeds staffing on the shift.

8. NPD will no longer respond to vehicle crashes on private property unless there are injuries, severe damage, or a hit skip is involved.

9. There may be times when an officer may have to wait for backup from a neighboring department before responding to a high risk call.10. Our participation in the Trumbull County OVI Task Force and Niles High School SMASH traffic safety program will be suspended.