By RUSS OLIVO

WOONSOCKET — Fire Chief Kenneth A. Finlay's sudden retirement prompted the firefighters union to file an emergency petition in Superior Court seeking to reopen testimony in its bid to prevent the city from laying off firefighters.

But Associate Superior Court Justice Susan E. McGuirl denied the request during a hearing in chambers Tuesday and she is scheduled to render a decision this afternoon on whether Mayor Susan D. Menard can proceed with the layoffs, lawyers in the case say.
Called by the union as an adverse witness, Finlay testified last week that he could safely run the Woonsocket Fire Department with as few as 112 firefighters to man four platoons, plus three daytime administrative staffers, including himself.
In the emergency petition, Edward C. Roy Jr., lawyer for Local 732 of the International Association of Fire Fighters, said Finlay knew when he testified last Wednesday and Thursday that he was going to leave the fire department and wouldn't be around to administer the layoff plan. Had the IAFF been aware of the chief's plans, it would not have called Finlay to testify on the issue, but his interim successor, Deputy Chief Thomas F. Williams.
Williams would have contradicted Finlay on the safety issue, Roy asserted in court papers, saying his “testimony arguably should carry greater weight than that of Finlay since Williams will be running the Woonsocket Fire Department during the period of time that the city's proposed temporary layoff plan will occur.”
City lawyer Christopher Lambert rejected the inference that Finlay, a former president of the IAFF, failed to testify truthfully on whether the layoffs would place firefighters in harm's way.
“He's one of the most honest people I know,” said Lambert. “If I didn't think he was credible I would have called an expert witness to testify instead of the chief.”
Citing continuing friction between the city and the union, Finlay, a firefighter in Woonsocket for 31 years, tendered his resignation hours after closing arguments in the case on Friday. Retiring Cumberland Hill Fire Chief Richard Susi said the governing body of the neighboring department announced the following day that Finlay had been hired to succeed him at the end of the month.
Without gaining contract concessions from the IAFF, the city says it needs to eliminate 18 firefighter positions to help plug a $3.6 million hole in the budget caused by a cut in state aid. During a three-day hearing before McGuirl last week, firefighters argued that state law and their contract's minimum manning provisions prevent the city from making any layoffs.
Firefighters testified that layoffs would cause economic hardship and threaten their safety on the job by exposing them to increased fatigue, forced overtime and higher levels of  stress.
The city argues that it not only has “management's rights” to impose the layoffs, but is compelled to do so as part of a plan to stave off municipal insolvency. During the hearing, Planning Director Joel D. Mathews testified that the city was at risk of running out of cash to pay bills and salaries by the middle of the month.
City officials said Tuesday however that they have successfully averted the cash crunch - at least through the end of March - after striking a deal with Citizens Bank to borrow $3 million in anticipation of April's tax receipts.
The loan, known as a tax anticipation note, is a common type of financing designed to preserve cash flow in municipal governments. Menard said the money was needed in this case because the city is expecting some $7.2 million in property tax receipts in April, but only about $1.4 million in March.
But Menard said the loan will only get the city through several more pay periods and is just one part of a plan to compensate for the $3.6 million cut in state aid. Other facets include layoffs of police and firefighters – or, alternatively, obtaining contractual concessions from them, Menard said. Still other pieces of the plan call for generating new revenue from trash collection fees and by privatizing the so-called outside sewer crews.
“It's just one part of the package,” Menard said.
While two other unions agreed to new contracts as part of Menard's cost-cutting plan, so far the firefighters and Local 404 of the International Brotherhood of Police Officers  have been unable to come to terms with the city. Menard last asked both unions to take a 5 percent pay cut and to begin contributing 15 percent of their gross pay toward annual health premiums.
The dispute landed in court when Menard threatened to commence layoffs after talks with both unions broke down. Judge Richard Israel issued a temporary order prohibiting the city from taking any action with regard to firefighters on Feb. 19 – an order the firefighters want McGuirl to preserve, and the city wants her to quash. The IBPO could seek a similar no-layoff order, although Menard says she would consider reopening talks with either bargaining unit no matter what happens in court today.