Saint John council is going ahead with cuts to police, fire and other services despite last-minute financial assistance from the province.      

After restricting city operations, council approved a $152-million budget for 2018. Funds for police and fire have been reduced at $1.25 million each.

Saint John Mayor Don Darling says the move is necessary given the city's financial challenges.

“With the kind of structural deficit that we have of about $6 million this year and going to $14 million by 2022, we moved forward with the plan that's been several months in the making,” Darling says.

Darling received a letter Friday from Premier Brian Gallant saying, "We want to work with you so you can avoid cuts to front-line services and you have my guarantee that the province will work with you."

Gallant said government wanted to give council a “heads up that they can’t cut their way to prosperity."

“We saw that happen in 2011-2013 with the previous New Brunswick Conservative government. They were trying to cut their way to prosperity and our economy unfortunately retracted during that time," says Gallant.

Both fire and police unions are warning public safety will be compromised in Saint John due to the cuts.

“This mayor and council decided on this $1.25-million cut without even knowing the impacts of the cuts whatsoever," says Bob Davidson of the Saint John Police Association. 

Davidson says the move means less community policing and less emphasis on proactive policing, which will be “detrimental” to Saint John residents.

"The chief has already come out and told us that he's cutting street crime. You can imagine in the days of drugs situation we have across Canada, we're going to cut the street crime?” Davidson says.

The police union claims the province is offering $3.5 million in provincial assistance, but the premier's letter makes no mention of money.

"If we were have landed on how we're going to do this we would have announced it already,” Gallant says. “This is complex, as you can imagine. We as a province need the city of Saint John to be flourishing. We need it to be stronger than it is."

Gary Lowe is one of three councillors who voted against the budget. He says it’s not just police and fire who will be impacted.

"I'm talking about plowing, I'm talking about cutting grass, I'm talking about many things. You're going to see bus drivers laid off,” says Lowe.

Lowe and other members of council, including the mayor, believe the province can help over time.

The premier expects to make a funding announcement for the city in early 2018.

With files from CTV Atlantic’s Mary Cranston.