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Fire Dept. Consolidation FIRE DEPARTMENT CONSOLIDATION COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES November 26, 1991 New Hope City Hall 7:00 p.m. 4401 XylonAve. No. New Hope, MN 55428 C~ll to Order The Fire Department Consolidation Committee was called to order by Temporary Chair and Facilitator Frank Quisenberry at 7:00 p.m. Roll Call/Introductions Present: Jack Irving, Crystal Councilmember Elmer Carlson, Crystal Councilmember (substituting for Betty Herbes, Crystal MayOr) Jerry Dulgar, Crystal City Manager Kevin McGinty, Crystal Fire Chief Steve Longaecker, Crystal Fire Department Justin Anderson, Citizen Member Ed Erickson, New Hope Mayor Gary L'Herault, New Hope Councilmember Dan Donahue, New Hope City Manager Doug Smith, New Hope Fire Chief Don Fornier, New Hope Fire Department Frank Quisenberry, Crystal Citizen, Temporary Chair andFacilitator Michael Barone, Crystal Employee - Consolidation Committee Staff. Absent: Rusty Demeules, New Hope Citizen Member Temporary Chair Frank Quisenberry expressed an interest in accomplishing three items for the initial meeting: I. Introductions, II. Bring forth the issues, agenda items and concerns for the purpose of possibly sharing services and/or merging the two fire departments. III. Organize the committee on what it intends to do in future meetings. I. Introductions were done by going around thetable, stating your name and position/interest in being on the committee. II. Concerns of the Committee Members: 1. How serious is the discussion? What "humps" will the committee have to overcome (pay, benefits, pensions). 2. How do we provide a different/better level of service at or near the expenditures/resources that currently exist? 3. Can we have a cost savings and not sacrifice existing services? 4. If cost savings not found, would we continue to pursue consolidation? 5. A list of advantages and disadvantages needs to be listed. This list should provide some answers as to whether or not consolidation is feasible. 6. If merger is currently feasible, should we set-up a plan to implement a merger five years down the road, as an example? 7. We should thoroughly study the situation, maintaining a continuum of cooperation that currently exists. Also, study some of the other fire department mergers that have taken place in the last 5-10 years. Ex: Anoka/Champlin and Centennial. S. Look at the possibility of a Joint Powers Agreement to facilitate the consolidationprocess. 9. Maintain the trust and respect that currently exists within both fire departments and maintain the congenial relationship that currently exists between both cities' fire departments. 10. Lock at impact of a possible consolidation on pay, benefits, pensions, relief associations, etc. 11. Look at balancing any consolidation and cost savings versus the morale and resources of the firefighters. (job security) 12. In light of the many demands placed on fire departments and cities in the past few years by the federal government, state government and county government, how can a different level of service be provided to the citizens of our communities? 13. How can a continuous improvement of service be achieved in the future, keeping in mind the quality in perception by the public, and the quality in fact (dollars and cents)? 14. Compare the by-laws of both departments so all items of interest are covered and approved in a set of by-laws for a proposed consolidated department. III. Behavioral Ground rules for Committee: The following behavioral ground rules were agreed upon by the committee members: - Open meetings, run informally - allowing for a free flow of information. - No hidden agendas by any of the committee members throughout the process. - Roughly a two hour time limit for each meeting, with one meeting per month. Also, a review to assess the progress of the committee should occur at six months, or around May 1992. - Okay to bring in outside information sources and guests that have expertise in certain, pertinent areas relevant to the group's discussion. - Recognize that the position you currently hold in your organization requires that you take certain positions and responsibilities on the issues at hand. - Committee should function as a "Committee of the Whole." The only subcommittees allowed will be the ones created and designated by the whole group; no informal subcommittees allowed. The purpose here is to avoid any type of "lobbying" aspect to emerge as a hindrance to the progress of the group. - By consensus, it was approved by the committee that Mayor Ed Erickson of New Hope and Mayor Pete Meintsma of Crystal or his designee would be co- chairs of ~he committee, and that the responsibility of running ~he meetings would rotate wi~h the location site month to month between the two cities. - By consensus, the meeting minutes and agendas would be prepared by the staff me~ber to ~his committee, Michael Barone, Crystal Employee. Respectfully Submitted January ?, 1992, Michael Barone CITY ',./,J CRYSTAL 4141 Douglas Drive North · Crystal, MN 55422-1696 · 537-8421 ADMINISTRATW~ OFFICE Memorandum DATE: January 8, 1992 TO: Pete Meintsma, Mayor of Crystal Jack Irving, Councilmember Frank Quisenberry, Facilitator Kevin McGinty, Fire Chief Steve Longaecker, Fire Department Justin Anderson, Citizen Member Ed Erickson, Mayor of New Hope Gary L'Herault, Councilmember Doug Smith, Fire Chief Don Fournier, Fire Department Rusty Demeules, Citizen Member FROM: Jerry Dulgar, City Manager of Crystal Dan Donahuer City Manager of New Hope SUBJECT: Joint Meeting Tuesday, January 14, 1992 A joint meeting with members of the City of Crystal and the city of New Hope Fire Consolidation Committee will be held on Tues.&y, J~u&~ 14, 1992 at ? ~.m. at Crystal City Hall 4141 Douglas Drive Council Chambers. Please call me (Jerry) at 537-8421 to let me know if you will not be in attendance. FIRE DEPARTMENT CONSOLIDATION COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES January 14, 1992 Crystal City Hall 7:00 p.m. 4141 Douglas Drive Crystal, MN 55422 Call to Order The Fire Department Consolidation Committee was called to order by Crystal Mayor Pro Tem Jack Irving at 7:10 p.m. Roll Call/Introductions Present: Jack Irving, Crystal Mayor Pro rem Jerry Dulgar, Crystal City Manager Kevin McGinty, Crystal Fire Chief Justin Anderson, Crystal Citizen Member Ed Erickson, New Hope Mayor Gary L'Herault, New Hope Councilmember Dan Donahue, New Hope City Manager Doug Smith, New Hope Fire Chief Don Fornier, New Hope Fire Department Michael Barone, Crystal Employee'- Committee Staff Absent: Rusty Demeules, New Hope Citizen Member Steve Longaecker, Crystal Fire Department Frank Quisenberry, Committee Facilitator Meetinq The committee viewed the Video "The Power of Paradigms" by Joel Barker. The video concernedhow organizations react/respond to change in the world. Mr. Barker gave many examples and gave many definitions to explain his theories. The minutes of the November 26, 1991 meeting were moved for approval by Dan Donahue, seconded by Kevin McGinty, as submitted. Motion Carried. Some additional concerns of committee members were expressed: o It was reiterated by Dan Donahue that pay and benefits cannot be decreased for any Fire Department personnel as discussion of this process moves forward. o Itwas mentioned by Kevin McGinty that most Fire Department personnel have a "wait and see" attitude concerning a possible merger. They don't have any real concrete reasons at this point to not be in favor of a merger of services, but once the mechanics of the possible merger are delineated, they will be able to react to them. It was agreed upon that construction of a Mission Statement and objectives for the committee should be tabled until th-e February meeting in order to have Frank Quisenberry facilitate this process. It was suggested by Jerry Dulgar that there are a number of issues on where to begin discussion of the mechanics of a merger. The committee felt that at least to begin, a review of the organizational structure of each of the Fire Departments, and each department's current equipment inventory, as well as future needs for equipment, would be appropriate to discuss for the February meeting. Chiefs McGinty and Smith will meet, along with committee staff Mike Barone, to prepare ,materials for discussion on these topics for the February meeting. The committee decided that the next meeting date and time will be set after Jerry Dulgar talks with Frank Quisenberry so Mr. Quisenberry can be in attendance for the Mission Statement work portion of the February meeting. Jerry Dulgar moved to adjourn the meeting. Dan Donahue seconded the motion. The meeting adjourned at 8:40 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Michael Barone FIRE DEPARTMENT CONSOLIDATION MEETING MINUTES Tuesday, February 25, 1992 New Hope Fire Station 7:00 p.m. 4251 Xylon Avenue North New Hope, MN 55428 I. Gall to Order The Fire Department Consolidation Committee was called to order by New Hope Mayor Ed Erickson at 7:20 p.m. The meeting started late due to the tour of the New Hope Fire Station. Present: Jack Irving, Crystal Mayor Pro-Tem Jerry Dulgar, Crystal City Manager Kevin McGinty, Crystal Fire Chief Steve Longaecker, Crystal Fire Dept. Justin Anderson, Crystal Citizen Member Ed Erickson, New Hope Mayor Gary L'Herault, New Hope Councilmember Dan Donahue, New Hope City Manager Doug Smith, New Hope Fire Chief Don Fournier, New Hope Citizen Member Frank Quisen~erry, Committee Facilitator Mike Barone, Committee Staff Absent: Gary Joselyn, Crystal Councilmember Rusty Demeules, New Hope Citizen Memb;er It was moved by Jerry Dulgar and seconded by Gary L'Herault to approve the minutes, as submitted, from the January 14, 1992 meeting. Motion carried. IV. Mission Statement Frank Quisenberry facilitated this process. Frank read the "Visioning Exercise S,~mmary" done at the November 1991 meeting. The group captured these t. hemes from this exercise: Daytime response; Common Code Enforcement; High profile depar~.ment; E~uipment; Common Territory with resources; Customer satisfaction; Management/leadership/Positive work culture; Training; Fire Prevention/Education; Long-term Planning; Size of department with efficient .use of resources; Cost effective department; Ability to attract/keep highly qualified firefighters. Frank also re-read the "Concerns of the Committee Members" done at the November 1991 meeting. A three-fold statement of Mission for the committee emerged from these concerns, which will include the purpose of the committee, the customers served, and what the committee plans to do to justify its existence. Mission Statement The joint Fire Services Consolidation Committee, comprised of members from both the City of Crystal and City of NeW Hope, propose to gather data and information, develop criteria to evaluate the data and inf6rmation gathered, analyze this data and information, and then make recommendations to the respective City Councils as to the feasibility, extent, and cost-effectiveness of consolidating fire services between the Cities of Crystal and New Hope. Goals of the Committee 1. Gather current data on Resources. Most of the data that needs to be gathered falls into these major categories: A. Equipment/Maintenance B. Labor/Skills/Training C. Emergency Responses D. Fire Prevention 2. Develop criteria to review/analyze data byI involving the major stakeholders in the process: City Councils, Fire Departments, citizens in both communities, and outside organizations and agencies that set forth standards to be met in operating a combined ~ department. Information from previous fire department consolidations in the region would be beneficial to our process, as well. 3. S~mmarize, analyze, and make recommendations that could be incorporated into a long range plan as to the future needs of a combined fire department. V. Report from Fire Chiefs Kevin McGinty and Doug Smith presented some information to the committee members, using some overhead projections, to show currently what each department has for major equipment, the age of the equipment, an organization chart, and an overview of each department's appropriations for the past few years. Committee members expressed a desire to see "apples" compared to "apples" in order to further evaluate the finances of each department for the next joint meeting. Information wanted from =he financial reports would concern salaries, training expenses, response times, number of calls, contributions toward benefits and relief associations, etc. VI. No other business VII. Next Meetin~ Nex~ joint meeting will be held on Tuesday, March 10, 1992 at Crystal City Hall at 7:00 9.m. The committee agreed to meet the second Tuesday of each month. This meeting deviated from our initial 91ans to meet on the second Tuesday in order to accommodate Facilitator Frank Quisenberry. VIII. Adjournment It was moved by Jack Irving and seconded by Kevin McGinty to adjourn the meeting. The meeting adjourned at 9:10 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Michael Barone FIRE DEPARTMENT CONSOLIDATION MEETING MINUTES Tuesday, March 10, 1992 City of Crystal 7:00 p.m. South Conference Room 4141 Douglas Drive North Crystal, MN 55422 I. Call to Order: Co-chairs Irving and Erickson absent. The meeting began at 7:20 p.m. Present: Kevin McGinty, Crystal Fire Chief Justin Anderson, Citizen Member Doug Smith, New Hope Fire Chief Don Fournier, New Hope Fire Dept. Rusty Demeules, Citizen Member Jerry Dulgar, Crystal City Manager Dan Donahue, New Hope City Manager Michael Barone, Committee Staff Absent: Jack Irving, Crystal Mayor Pro-Tem Gary Joselyn, Crystal Councilmember Steve Longaecker, Crystal Fire Dept. Ed Erickson, New Hope Mayor Gary L'Herault, New Hope Councilmember Frank Quisenberry, Committee Facilitator No formal action taken on approving minutes from Febrl/ary 23,' 1992. : IV. Reuort from Fire Chiefs Both Fire Chiefs distributed budget summaries. Submit=ed were the 1992 budget summary for Crystal and ~he ac=ual 1991 expenses for New Hope. Also provide(! by Chief McGinty was a Fire Department Personnel Summary as prepared by Steve Longaecker. The summary details the firefighter certification level, medical response training, and Haz-Mat emergency response training for Crystal's firefighters. Chief Smith from New Hope distributed a summary of the New Hope Fire Department activities for 1991 generated by their Prober Chief program. He explained a number of the pages to the committee. V. Time-Line for "Goals of Committee" Discussion concerning a time-line for "Goals of Committee" was not formally discussed; and will probably be discussed at the April 14, 1992 meeting. VI. other Business City Managers Dan Donahue and Jerry Dulgar distributed copies of two letters relating to the status of both Relief Associations with a possible merger. One letter was from Ms. Judith M. Johnson, General Counsel with the State of Minnesota's office of the State Auditor addressed to Mr. Steven A. Sondrall, with the law firm Corrick & Sondrall, City Attorney for the City of New Hope. The second letter was from Mr. Sondrall to both Dan Donahue and Jerry Dulgar. The essence of these letters advises both City Managers to "seek the assistance of legal counsel specializing in pension law to recommend a proper course of action for the Relief Associations if the dep&r~ments merge" (copies of letters enclosed). Both City Managers said they would do what is recommended by Mr. Sondrall and report back to the committee in April. Also, both City Managers advised that they should meet with both Fire Chiefs and both Finance Directors for each city to discuss the financial details of both Fire Departments. The outcome from this meeting will be presented at the April meeting, as well. VII. Next Meetin~ Tuesday, April 14, 1992, at 7:00 p.m. is the next scheduled committee meeting. The committee will meet at the New Hope Fire Station, 4251 Xylon Avenue North, New Hope, MN 55428. Due to the large number of absent members at this meeting, Jerry Dulgar recommended that the second Tuesday format for the joint committee meetings be discussed at the April meeting to see if this is a good night to meet, or should the committee 'find another night. vzz . The meeting ended at ~:45 p.m. Respect fully submitted, Michael Barone FIRE DEPARTMENT CONSOLIDATION COMMITTEE ,AGENDA for April 14, 1992 Meeting 1. Call to Order: Co-chair Ed Erickson, New Hope Mayor Co-chair Jack Irving, Crystal Mayor Pro Tem 2. Roll Call. 3. Approval of February 25, 1992 and March 10, 1992 meeting minutes. 4. Status of seeking pension law specialist for a course of action concerning both Relief Associations from City Managers. 5. Report from meeting of City Managers, Fire Chiefs, and Finance Directors concerning financial details of both Fire Departments from City Managers and/or Fire Chiefs. 6. Decide upon timeline for "Goals of Committee", designate sub-committees and assignments for work in order to satisfy "Goals". 7. Discussion of "second Tuesday of each month" format .for joint Meetings._~ 8. Other business. 9. Agree on date and select a site within City of crystal for May meeting. Tentative "Second Tuesday" date - Tuesday, May 12, 1992 10. Adjournment. FIRE DEPARTMENT CONSOLIDATION COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES Tuesday, April 14, 1992 New'Hope City Hall 7:00 p.m. Downstairs Conference Room 4401 Xylon Avenue North New Hope, MN' 55428 I. Call to Order Co-chair Jack Irving called the meeting to order at 7:10 p.m. II. ~ Present: Jack Irving, Crystal Mayor Pro rem Gary Joselyn, Crystal CounCilmember Jerry Dulgar, Crystal City Manager Kevin McGinty, Crystal Fire Chief Steve Longaecker, Crystal Fire Department Justin Anderson, Crystal Citizen Member Dan Donahue, New Hope City Manager Doug Smith, New Hope Fire Chief Don Fornier, New Hope Fire Department Michael Barone, Crystal Employee - Committee Staff Absent: Rusty Demeules, New Hope Citizen Member Ed Erickson, New Hope Mayor Gary L'Herault, New Hope Councilmember III. Minutes It was moved by Jerry Dulgar and seconded by Doug Smith to approve the minutes, as submitted, from both the February and March meetings. Motion Carried. IV. Pensions/Relief Associations City Managers DonahUe and Dulgar reported that both Steve Sondrall and Dave Kennedy are still in the process of gathering information-on the impact of a potential merger on both Relief Associations. Dan Donahue noted that there are a number of legal precedents for reference concerning "dissolutions" of joint departments in the state, but none on any "consolidations" to refer to in the pension law area. It was suggested by. Steve Longaecker that Milo Bennett, Chief of the Centennial Fire District, be contacted for the purpose of · finding out what was done in the creation of their Fire District concerning pensions/relief associations. V. Financial ReDort ~ Mike Barone prepared some charts comparing the finances of both Fire Departments for the committee to view. A few questions till were apparent during the discussion concerning: i) breakout of hourly wages since both cities pay out their firefighters in different methods, ii) comparisons between cities on cost for training and pension contributions, and iii) special items - such as payments on the recent Hepatitis B vaccinations - on how they are budgeted/accounted for. Both City Managers suggested that their assistants, Sherry Draper from New Hope and Nancy Gohman from Crystal, should meet with the Finance Directors and pin down the details of the Fire Department budgets. VI. "Goals of Committee" Timeline From the meetings and information gathered from the Finance Directors and Fire Chiefs, Goal %1 is almost completed, and should be completed when the meeting between the Finance Directors and Sherry Draper and Nancy Gohman takes place in May. Goals #2 and #3 will be discussed in the future, and should be determined at the next meeting in June. VII. Meetinq Format The second Tuesday format will be kept. But, the next meeting will not be until June sometime. With Jim Otto beginning as Crystal Finance Director on May 12, and acting Finance Director~ Jessie Hart ready to go on maternity leave sometime in May as well, the concensus of the committee is to cancel the meeting in may and meet next in June. VIII.Other Business No other business discussed. IX. Next Meetina The next meeting, to be held in June, will be decided upon in late May or early June and information will be mailed to committee members then. X. Adtournment It was moved by Dan Donahue and seconded by Jerry Dulgar to adjourn the meeting. Motion Carried. The meeting adjourned at 8:15 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Michael Barone ' FIRE DEPARTMENT CONSOLIDATION COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES J~e 23, 1992 Crystal City Hall 7:00 p.m. 4141 Douglas Drive Crystal, MN 55422 Call to Order The Fire Department Consolidation Committee was called to order by New Hope Mayor Ed Erickson. Roll Call/Introductions Present~ Jack Irving, Crystal Mayor Pro rem Jerry Dulgar, Crystal City Manager Justin Anderson, Crystal Citizen Member Steve Longaecker, Crystal Fire Department Ed Erickson, New Hope Mayor Gary L'Herault, New Hope Councilmember Dan Donahue, New Hope City Manager Doug Smith, New Hope Fire Chief Rusty Demeules, New Hope Citizen Member Absent= Jack Irving, Crystal Mayor Pro rem Gary Joselyn, Crystal Councilmember Kevin McGinty, Crystal Fire Chief Don Fornier, New Hope Fire Department Others Present: Jim Otto, Crystal Finance Director Nancy Gohman, Crystal Assistant Manager Sherry Draper, New Hope Administrative Assistant The minutes of the April 14, 1992 meeting were moved for approval by Rusty Demeules and seconded by Steve Longaecker as submitted. Motion Carried. Nancy Gohman, Assistant Manager from Crystal and Sherry Draper, Administrative Assistant from New Hope went through the financial statement regarding 1991 estimated ex]~enditures for fire departments. A lengthy discussion was held regarding this information. Also discussed was the donations each organization received and purchased equipment or items for operations purchases. It was a concensus of the committee to correct the error in the line item custodian for New Hope and to add the informationregarding auto insurance in this summary. The Committee discussed wages. There were various questions and concerns regarding the wage schedules. Specifically noting that New Hope's wages are budgeted in a lump sum and that total lump sum is paid out to t_he members each year regardless of number of calls. The difference from Crystal is that Crystal actually uses a wage rate and pays out those actual wages on a quarterly basis. The Committee discussed pension. Jerry Dulgar, Crystal City Manager and Dan Donahue, New Hope City Manager discussed the letter dated June 17, 1992 regarding a merger of fire departments from attorney Corrine Heine. The group discussed the importance of this issue regarding pensions. Committee member Erickson asked if we (City staff) had shared input regarding financial material with the fire departments. It was a concensus of the committee that the Chief's should meet with their respective departments to go through this report regarding the financial comparisons in detail and request input from the volunteer firefighters. It was a concensus of the committee to update and correct the spreadsheet (minor errors were found) and get it out to the Chief's so they can arrange for a meeting with their members as soon as possible. It was also brought up that questions and concerns stated by the firefighters regarding this issue should be submitted to the Chief's in writing after they have their sessions. The information that the Chief's gather after their meeting should be reported to the Committee as a whole at their next regular meeting in August. The committee discussed New Hope and the union question. Member Anderson questioned why New Hope was involved with the idea of unionization. The committee discussed pros and cons of a joint fire department venture. Dan Donahue, New Hope City Manager stated he would like the Chief's to study what the benefits and the downsides are concerning this joint project. It was a concensus of the committee to have the Chief's and possibly their officers work together to come up with Several scenarios regarding the benefits, cost-savings, or downsides to a joint venture. This should include number of volunteers needed to run a joint operation, station location, equipment, fire prevention and how it's going to be handled, and additional costs which were listed as a common or zero dollar amount in the financial summary. This information is to be brought back to the group at their next regular meeting. The meeting adjourned at 8:58 p.m. NEW HOPE/CRYSTAL FIRE DEPARTMENT CONSOLIDATION COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES August 17, 1992 New Hope Fire Station 7:00 p.m. 4251 Xylon Avenue North ~ New Hope, MN 55428 Call to Order The Fire Department Consolidation Committee was called to order by Crystal Mayor Pro rem Jack Irving. Roll Call/Introductions Present: Jack Irving, Crystal Mayor Pro tem Jerry Dulgar, Crystal City Manager Kevin McGinty, Crystal Fire Chief Justin Anderson, Crystal Citizen Member Steve Longaecker, Crystal Fire Department Dan Donahue, New Hope City Manager Doug Smith, New Hope Fire Chief Don Fornier, New Hope Fire Department Absent: Ed Erickson, New Hope Mayor Gary L'Herault, New Hope Councilmember Rusty Demeules, New Hope Citizen Member Gary Joselyn, Crystal Councilmember Meetina The minutes of the June 23, 1992 meeting were moved for approval with one correction. The correction being that Jack Irving, Crystal Mayor Pro rem was not present at this meeting, Motion Carried. Chief McGinty and Chief Smith passed out copies of questions and concerns developed from meetings with their respective fire departments. The questions were gone over and briefly discussed. The Fire Chiefs are to consolidate these lists into categories. The Fire Chiefs andthe City Managers will meet to develop answers to the questions that they can. Recommendations will be brought back to the Task Force. JuddI~Anderson brought forward concerns of rumors that have been going around in the fire departments and amongst retired firefighters; specifically, the question of pension issues and how retirees would be accommodated. Jerry Dulgar identified some of the concerns and would be forwarding these questions to the attorney for furtherresearch and answers. Chiefs McGinty and Smith presented information regarding options that could be utilized by a consolidated fire department regarding the number of major pieces of equipment, personnel and response districts. Also, presented was information on response times and options on possible organizational structures within a consolidated fire district. Also discussed was what the mission would be' of a consolidated fire district with Crystal presenting their draft of a fire department mission statement. Several discussion questions were brought forward including the minimum number of engines that we could use and be comfortable with as well as minimum numbers of volunteer firefighters that would be required to adequately staff fire stations. Discussion was also held on how an aggressive fire prevention program and built-in fire suppression program could positively affect the response operations of a consolidated fire district. Next Meetinq The next meeting will be held in the City of Crystal on September 8, 1992, 7:00 p.m. Tentative agenda is further discussion of: 1. Questions and concerns brought forward by firefighters. 2. Pension issues The meeting was adjourned at 9:00 p.m. ( September 17, 1992 FIREFIGHTER QUESTIONS AND CONCERNS The following are questions and/or concerns from firefighters of New Hope and Crystal brought forward at meetings in June and July of 1992 followed by the best answer available at this time. Consolidation Process 1. Q. What are the advantages/disadvantages to the cities? A.' The Task Force is developing a repOrt to the City Councils stating advantages and disadvantages. The perceived advantages will be a financial benefit, lack of duplication of effort, increase in the utilization of resources and decrease in response time to certain areas. 2. Q. What are the advantages/disadvantages to firefighters? A. The answer to this question is based primarily on a perceived advantage or disadvantage by an individual firefighter and. will be determined by individuals after reviewing the proposal and recommendation developed by the Task Force. 3. Q. What is the time line for this proposal? A. At this time, the Task Force is attempting to develop a work plan with target dates. It is hoped that a report or recommendation could be available in the spring 1993. 4. Q. Could there be a trial period or phase-in period? A. A trial period does not seem feasible; however, any agreement will include a disolving agreement. A phase- in period is likely in a consolidation. The phase-in Would be determined by the management of the fire district. 5. Q.. Who makes the final decision on a consolidation? A. This appears to bea joint Manager/Council decision based on findings of the Task Force and recommendation by the City Managers. A. When a draft report and recommendation is available, it is planned to hold a joint meeting to discuss the report and address any concerns. Governance 1. Q. Who would be the Fire Chief and what would the organizational structure look like? 2. Q. Who would the Chief report to? 3. Q. Who would determine the budget figure to use for a consolidated department? 4. Q. How would the fund (budget figure) be divided? 5. Q. How would a joint powers agreement work? 6. Q. How would a joint powers agreement be defined? 7. Q. Who would be in authority in a joint powers agreement? A. All of the governance questions will be answered after a decision is made on whether to consolidate or not. These questions will be answered after a joint powers board was established and the upper level management of the district were appointed. Operations (Operational decisions would be made by the Chief, his management staff and the district management; however, some answers are as follows): 1. Q. What would the station response zones look like? A. This would be determined by Chief and district management. 2. Q. Would firefighters be assigned/transferred to different stations? A. Possibly, depending on where they live and/or work. 3. Q. Would stations be closed or relocated? A. Not in the foreseeable future. 4. Q. How many stations will be needed for a consolidated fire department? A. At this point, all three stations would appear to be needed. Station location and/or number of stations is a management decision that would be evaluated on an ongoing basis by the Chief of the department and the district management. 5. Q. Will calls be dispatched by station/district? A. This would be decided based on need by the Chief and district management, but it would be anticipated that, yes, there would be district calling. 6. Q. What will be the makeup of the command structure? A. It will be decided by the district management based on need. 7. Q. Would fire inspection/prevention emphasis increase in the City of Crystal and/or New Hope because of this consolidation? A. It is anticipated that additional emphasis will continue to be placed on fire prevention activities. Personnel 1. Q. What is the expected affect on personnel? A. It is expected that personnel will need to be flexible during a consolidation period. There may be some change, but it is anticipated that nothing radically different would occur. 2. Q. Would there be a large number of personnel resigning? A. It is hoped that this would not be the case, but it is an individual's decision, as alWays, whether to remain in the organization or not. 3. Q. Would the district hire additional full-time firefighters similar to the City of Fridley? A. Not in the foreseeable future. 4. Q. How would the different wage structures be merged? Increases/Decreases? A. Wages and benefits will be decided by the district management and joint powers board. 5. Q. Will firefighters be laid off? A. It is anticipated that any reduction in staff would occur through attrition and not layoffs. 6. Q. What staffing level would be needed to serve both communities adequately? A. This would be a decision of the Chief and district management based on need,.but it is anticipated that approximately 18-22 firefighters would be needed per station depending on responding equipment or approximately 60 firefighters. Pensions 1. Q. How would Relief Association bylaws be merged and how would benefits be paidduring the interim period between the consolidation and the final merger of Relief Association bylaws? A. No decisions have been made in this area. The Task Force will be considering special legislation to consolidate the departments and have as little change in pensions and/or benefits as possible. 2. Q. Can excess money from the lump sum, currently used for wages each year in New Hope, be put towards the Firefighters Pension Fund instead of disbursed as a "bonus" at year-end? A. Wages and benefits will be determined by the district management and joint powers board. 3. Q. Would pensions be rolled into one fund? A. No decision has been made at this time, but the Task Force is looking into special legislation that would give as much flexibility and/or allow employees to have as little disruption as possible. 4. Q. Would a defined contribution form of pension investing be set up? A. This will be looked at and considered. 5. Q. Retirees are concerned about how pensions would be handled and administered if a consolidation took place. A. It is the intention that if a consolidation occurs, that every effort will be made to make little or no change for retirees so that they would enjoy uninterrupted benefits. Miscellaneous 1. Q. Can New Hope's Fire Department always depend on receiving a certain amount of funds from the Lions gambling receipts? A. This is a question that should be directed towards the Lions and/or other charitable gambling organizations, but it should be noted that these funds are notoriously unreliable and unstable. NEW HOPE/CRYSTAL FIRE DEPARTMENT CONSOLIDATION COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES September 30, 1992 Crystal South Fire Station 7:00 p.m. 4101 Douglas Drive North Crystal, MN 55422 Call to Order The Fire Department Consolidation Committee was called to order by Crystal Mayor Pro tem Jack Irving. Roll Call/Introductions Present: Jack Irving, Crystal Mayor Pro tem Gary Joselyn, Crystal Councilmember Jerry Dulgar, Crystal City Manager Kevin McGinty, Crystal Fire Chief Justin Anderson, Crystal Citizen Member Steve Longaecker, Crystal Fire Department Ed Erickson, New Hope Mayor Gary L'Herault, New Hope Councilmember Dan Donahue, New Hope City Manager Doug Smith, New Hope Fire Chief Don Fournier, New Hope Fire Department Approval of Past Minutes It was moved, seconded and approved to 'accept the minutes of the August 17, 1992 meeting. Presentation bv David Kennedy. Crystal City Attorney on options for dealinq with the pension issue under a consolidated system. Mr. Kennedy discussed the current law as it would apply to a consolidated fire department. The cities would completely dissolve the pension plans based on current law and the Relief Associations would need to pay obligations and then distribute the funds on a pro-rated basis to active members. His recommendation was that the cities and Relief Associations decide what they would want to do with the pensions and 'then go for special legislation. The discussion revolved arOund keeping the two current pension plans and starting a third. Members that are currently in them would stay there with no disruption of expected benefits and retirees would continue to receive their benefits as always. A new pension fund would be established for all new firefighters. Many options were discussed regarding this third pension fund, including the question, would current active' members have an opportunity to transfer over if they so chose? Ail of these options were taken under advisement and the City Managers and possibly one or two others will meet with the Executive'Director of the Legislative Commission on Pension and Retirements to discuss what would need to be done for special legislation. Questions and Concerns The questions and concerns from firefighters were discussed with the answers that were available at this time. The task force approved these answers robe distributed to all firefighters and be mailed out to all the retirees. Work Plan The work plan was discussed identifying major areas that need to ' be addressed so a preliminary report can be made to Council. City Managers and Chiefs will be coming back with information regarding the first, several items on the work plan. Meeting was adjourned at 2100 hours. NEW HOPE/CRYSTAL FIRE DEPARTMENT CONSOLIDATION COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES February 9, 1993 New Hope Fire Station 7:00 p.m. 4251 Xylon Avenue North New Hope, MN 55428 Call to Order The consolidation Committee was called to order at 1915 hours by New Hope Mayor Ed Erickson. Roll Call Committee Members Present: Pete Meintsma, Crystal Mayor Gary Joselyn, Crystal Councilmember Jerry Dulgar, Crystal City Manager Kevin McGinty, Crystal Fire Chief' Justin Anderson, Crystal Citizen Member Steve Longaecker, Crystal Fire Department Ed. Erickson, New Hope Mayor Gary L'Herault, City of New Hope Dan Donahue, New Hope City Manager Doug Smith, New Hope Fire Chief Others Present: Greg Carlson, New Hope Fire Department Steve Homestad, New Hope Fire Department Approval of Past Minutes It was moved, seconded and approved to accept the minutes of the September 30, 1992 meeting. Discussion of Pension Fund Merqer DRAFT Leqislation It was pointed out that the draft was intended to be a working copy and was not intended for general distribution until the Committee had a chance to look at it.- Copies were distributed to others outside the Committee who did not understand that this was a draft and those persons had some obvious problems with the language. A discussion was conducted on the summary of the draft legislation provided by Lawrence Martin, Executive Director of the Legislative Commission on Pension and Retirements. A brief review of the history as to why the Committee had decided to look at special legislation prior to a decision on whether a consolidation should go forward was held. It was reminded that this is probably the number one issue in the minds of the firefighters and' they need to know exactly what to expect will happen with their pensions prior to being asked to go along with any proposed consolidation of the fire services. The committee discussed several possible problem areas including the following: 1. Page 2, Subdivision 2, Makeup of the Board of Trustees. The Board will have eight members, four firefighters and four from City management. Discussion on this and whether there should be an odd number in case of ties. 2. Page 3, Lines 4 and 5. Discussion on why there are provisions prohibiting the relief association from indirectly receiving a donation from charitable gambling. 3. Page 3, Lines 8 through 17. Puts a cap on the amount of funds that can be in the general fund. This was discussed and probably is an unnecessary provision. 4. Page 3, Lines 18 through 25. Would prohibit the general fund of the relief association from being involved in lawful gambling activities. This would be different than other fire relief associations in the State. It was generally discussed that this could be detrimental and that the consolidated relief association should operate under the same rules as other fire relief associations. 5. Page 5, Lines 23 through 26. States that when the consolidation occurs, any monies remaining in the general fund of the New Hope or Crystal Fire Relief'Associations would be transferred to those respective cities. It was generally agreed that this was not a good idea and that any balances in general funds of the New Hope or Crystal Fire Departments would be transferred to the general fund in the new consolidated relief association. It was thought that the relief association board would get together and decide on an amount that each would bring to the new association. 6. Page 6, Line 10, Subdivision 1. Allows current retirees receiving a monthly service pension, disability benefit or surviVors benefit to continue receiving the benefit in the same way that they do now even after a consolidation.or, if the board so approves, they would have the option to convert their benefit to an annuity or other option, but they would not be required to. 7. Page 7, Subdivision 2. This area covers current vested firefighters. For the purposes of this law, vesting would be considered to have occurred after five years of service. Each firefighter would be entitled to remain under the current benefit plan that he or she was under or would have the option to convert to a defined contribution plan and would have 90 days to make that election. Persons with less than five years of service and any new firefighters hired in the consolidated fire department would be required to go into the defined contribution plan. Discussions were conducted on whether this option should be available for firefighters or if we should simply continue with a defined benefit plan as they currently have and merge the two systems. 8. Page 11, Lines 7 through 9. States that the bylaws of the new 'relief association would specify some minimum service levels in order to qualify for an allocation for that year. ThiS would generally apply to defined contribution plans, thus the reason it is included in the law; however, there may be some opportunities to tie this in to a defined benefit plan. It was decided that this bill, as is, with a brief explanation of what was discussed by the Committee, should be Sent to all members and retirees for their input. We are requesting that their input be returned to their respective fire chiefs by 12 noon, March 4th so that this can be distributed prior to the next meeting and some amendments can be made to this bill. Mr. Greg Carlson from the New Hope Fire Department briefly discussed his concerns and discussions With representative Ann Rest. "Where are we and where are we goinq?" A brief discussion was held on where we are and where we should be going. It was decided that we need to dispense with the pension issue first and that the other items should fall into line after that. The next meeting was set for March 11, 1993, 7:00 p.m. in Crystal. With no further business, the meeting was. adjourned at 2045 hoursl CITY'l:~ CRYSTAL 4141 Douglas Drive North · Crystal, MN 55422-1696 · 537-8421 ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE Memorandum DATE: March 19, 1992 TO: Jack Irving, Crystal Councilmember and Mayor Pro-Tem Gary Joselyn, Crystal Councilmember Kevin McGinty, Crystal Fire Chief Steve Longaecker, Crystal Fire Department Justin Anderson, Citizen Member Ed Erickson, New Hope Mayor Gary L'Herault, New Hope Councilmember Doug Smith, New Hope Fire Chief Don Fournier, New Hope Fire Department Rusty Demeules, Citizen Member Frank Quisenberry, Committee Facilitator Michael Barone, Crystal Employee-Committee Staff FROM: Jerry Dulgar, City Manager of Crystal Dan Donahue, City Manager of New Hope SUBJECT: Fire Department Consolidation Committee Meeting A joint meeting with members of the City of Crystal and the City of New Hope for the Fire Department Consolidation Committee will be held on T~es~ay, April 14, 1992 at 7 p.m. at New Hope Fire Station 4251 Xylon Avenue North New Hope, MN 55428. Please call me (Jerry) at 537-8421 to let me know if you will not be in attendance. FIRE DEPARTMENT CONSOLIDATION COMMITTEE AGENDA for April 14, 1992 Meeting 1. Call to Order: Co-chair Ed Erickson, New Hope Mayor Co-chair Jack Irving, Crystal Mayor Pro Tem 2. Roll Call. 3. Approval of February 25, 1992 and March 10, 1992 meeting minutes. 4. Status Of seeking pension law specialist for a course of action concerning both Relief Associations from City Managers. 5. Report from meeting of City Managers, Fire Chiefs, and Finance Directors concerning financial details of both Fire Departments from City Managers and/or Fire Chiefs. 6. Decide upon timeline for "Goals of Committee", designate sub-committees and assignments for work in order to satisfy "Goals". 7. Discussion of "second Tuesday of each month" format 'for Joint Meetings. -~ 8. Other business. 9. Agree on date and select a site within City of crystal for May meeting. Tentative "Second Tuesday" date - Tuesday, May 12, ~1992 10. Adjournment. FIRE DEPARTMENT CONSOLIDATION MEETING MINUTES Tuesday, March 10, 1992 City of Crystal 7:00 p.m. South Conference Room r4141 Douglas Drive North Crystal, MN 55422 I. Call to Order~ Co-chairs Irving and Erickson absent. The meeting began at 7:20 p.m. Present: Kevin McGinty, Crystal Fire Chief Justin Anderson, Citizen Member Doug Smith, New Hope Fire Chief Don Fournier, New Hope Fire Dept. Rusty Demeules, Citizen Member Jerry Dulgar, Crystal City Manager Dan Donahue, New Hope City Manager Michael Barone, Committee Staff Absent: Jack Irving, Crystal Mayor Pro-Tem Gary Joselyn, Crystal Councilmember Steve Longaecker, Crystal Fire Dept. Ed Erickson, New Hope Mayor Gary L'Herault, New Hope Councilmember Frank Quisenberry, Committee Facilitator No formal action taken on approving minutes from Febz~/ary 23, 1992. IV. RePort f_rom Fire Chiefs Both Fire Chiefs distributed budget summaries. Submitted were the 1992 budget summary for Crystal and the actual 1991 expenses for New Hope. Also provided by Chief McGinty was a Fire Department Personnel Summary as prepared by Steve Longaecker. The s,,mmary details the firefighter certification level, medical response training, and Haz-Mat emergency response training for Crystal's firefighters. Chief Smith from New Hope distributed a summary of the New Hope Fire Department activities for 1991 generated by their Prober Chief program. He explained a number of the pages to the committee. V. Time-Line for "Goals of Committee" Discussion concerning a time-line for "Goals of Committee" was not formally discussed; and will probably be discussed at the April 14, 1992 meeting. VI. Other ~usiness City Managers Dan Donahue and Jerry Dulgar distributed copies of two letters relating to the status of both Relief Associations with a possible merger. One letter was from Ms. Judith M. Johnson, General Counsel with the State of Minnesota's office of the State Auditor addressed to Mr. Steven A. Sondrall, with the law firm Corrick & Sondrall, City Attorney for the City of New Hope. The second letter was from Mr. Sondrall t° both Dan Donahue and Jerry Dulgar. The essence of these letters advises both City · Managers to "seek the assistance of legal counsel specializing in pension law to recommend a proper course of action for the Relief Associations if the departments merge" (copies of letters enclosed). Both City Managers said they would do what is recommended by Mr. Sondrall and report back to the committee in April. Also, both City Managers advised that they should meet with both Fire Chiefs and both Finance Directors for each city to discuss the financial details of both Fire Departments. The outcome from this meeting will be presented at the April meeting, as well. VII. Next Meeting Tuesday, April 14, 1992, at 7:00 p.m. is the next scheduled committee meeting. The committee will meet at the New Hope Fire Station, 4251 Xylon Avenue North, New Hope, MN 55428. Due to the large number of absent members at this meeting, Jerry Dulgar recommended that the second Tuesday format for the joint committee meetings be discussed at the April meeting to see if this. is a good night to meet, or should the committee find another night. The meeting ended at 8:45 p.m. Respectfully submitted Michael Barone March 10, 1992 Mr· Daniel d. Donahue City Manager City of New Hope 4401 Xylon Avenue North New Hope, MN 55428 Mr. Jerry Dulgar City Manager City of Crystal 4141 North Douglas Drive 'Crystal, MN 55422 RE; Merger of Fire Degartment/Relief Association Dear Dan and Jerry: Enclosed is a letter ! received from legal counsel for the Sta~e Auditor's office in connecl:ion with treatment of the fire relief association due to a possible merger of the New Hope and Crystal fire departments. As we discussed, ! believe we shoulcl seek =he assistance of legal Counsel specializing in pension law to recommend a proper course of action for the relief associations if the departments merge, ! can consult with the Dorsey law firm in this regar~l unless Dave Kennedy's office has someone on board in tlliS area. [.et me know if you want me to contact Jerry Gilligan in this regard. Very truly yours, Steven A. Sondrall Slt ~r~i:~'~.~,'~L,o~ STATE OF MINNESOTA K~'~;-~,--~;~% 0FFIC~ OF TNE STATE AUDITOR MAR~ B. DAYTON ST~ AUO~TO~ 296-255~ March 6, 1992 Mr. Steven A. $ondrall New Hope City Attorney - 8525 Edinbrook Crossing Suite 203 Brooklyn Park, Minnesota 55443 Dear Attorney Sondrall: I have received your letter of Febmm'y 26, 1992 tn l~,en Pe.m'~ requesting the advice of this Office on a potential merger of fire departments by New Hope and Crystal. Your letter indicates that you are currently considering two methods to re.solve the stares of the current volunteer fire relief axsociagons. Our records as of December 31, 1990 indicate that Crystal has a current deficit of $357,897 and a municipal con~bution of $29,831 annually. New Hope has a current deficit of $408,007 and a municipal contrib'ution of $21,720 annually. I have reviewed the relevant Minnesota Statutes and can raise some of the questions t2tat you will need to address. However, our Office doe4 not give advice on specific transactions or recommendations. Minn. Stat. 424A.02, sulxl$. I 1-13 provide statutory guidance goverrdng relief association dissolutions whea the fire department which it is associated with is dissolved or eliminated. You would need to determine whether the $oint Powers Agreement creates a dissolution of the now Independent fire departments. To the extent the Joint Powers Agreement muses a dissolution of the existing reliefs, you must dissolve the relief a.ssociadons and pay out the benefits pro tam as defined by the Statute. Minn. Stat. 424A.02, subd. 12 provides for years of s~rvice credit for vesting purposes, but allows credit for l~nsion calculation purposes for only those years of service in the new department. You must determine ff the loint Powers meets the requirements of · ~",{ EQUAL OPPORT%.'NITY EMPLOYER Mr. Steven A. $ondr~l M~rch 6, 1992 Page 2 Minn. Stat. 424A.02 to allow for vesting credits for your current members in the separate associations. To the ext~nt you want to merge the two associations, you sh0uld determine if t~is statut~ prevents that result. Minn. Stat. §6~.021 mandates the mechanism for payment of state aid. It would appeac that the new $oint Power could receive stat~ aid based on the combined population and net tax capacity. However, to the extent you maintained the existlng associations, the existing associations would not be eligible for fire aid, yet the municipalities would be r~quired to amortize and pay annual payments to the e~dsting associations until all benefits are paid out. T~is can b~ particularly troublesome sinc~ normal cost must be contributed each year as a contribution, even when the fund has achieved 100% funding. The difference in financial impact on the municipaliti~ between effecting a dissolution of the existing associations and maintaining thes~ associations appears to be substantial. Seeking the advice of both an actuary and a pension attorney would se~m to be appropriate. Another potential problem r~lates to differing benefit levels in the two ~$ociations. You would ne.~d to find a method to allocate muMcipal contributions in a manner faJ.r b~r both municipalities. ! hoI~ ~is tnformatiot~ has be~n helpful. With best regards. Sincerely, · Judith M. $ohnson General Counsel ~IMJ:tp 992 Mr. Daniel J. Donahue City Manager Ctty of New Hope 4¢01 Xy]on Avenue North New Hope, MN 55428 Mr. Jerry Du]gar City Manager City of Crystal 41{1 North Doug]as Drive 'Crystal, MN 55422 RE; Merger of Fire Department/Relief AsSociation Dear Dan and Jerry; Enclosed ts a letter ! received from legal counsel for the Auditor's o~fce {n connection with treatment o~ the fire re]~e~ association due to a Dos$'tb3e merger of the New HoDe and fire departments. As we discussed, I believe we should seek the assistance of 3ega3 counse~ s~ecta]iz~ng ~n pension law to recommend a proper course of action for the re3ief associations the departments merge, ! can consult wi~h the Dorsey law firm in this regara un3ess Dave Kennedy's office has someone on board in this area. Let me know you want me to contact Jerry Gil]tgan in thts regard. Very truly yours, Steven A. $ondral] alt MAR STATE OF MINNESOTA ff~.~.,~,.~J~:;~ OFFICE 0r THE STATE AUDITOR ~ ~~'~ SUITE 4~ ..... ~~ SAINT PAUL DAYTON AUDITOR 296-2552 March 6, 1992 Mr. Steven A. $ondrall New Hope City Attorney -- 8525 E, dinbrook Crossing Suite 203 Brooklyn Park, Minnesota 55443 Dear Attorney $ondrall: I have received your letter of February 26, 1992 to Ben Pcarce requesting the advice of this Office on a potential merger of fire departments by New Hope and Crystal. Your letter indicates that you are currently considering two methods to resolve the status of the current volunteer fire relief associations. Our records as of December 31, 1990 indicate that Crystal has a current deficit of $3:~7,897 and a municipal conu'ibution of $29,831 annually. New Hope has a current deficit of $408,007 and a municipal contribution of $21,720 annually. I have reviewed the relevant Minnesota Statutes and can raise some of the questions that you will need to address. However, our Office does not give advice on specific transactions or recommendations. Minn. Stat. 424A.02, sums. 11-13 provide statutory guidance governing relief association dissolutions when the f'u'e department which it is associated with is dissolved or eliminated. You would need to determine whether the Joint Powers Agreement creates a dissolution of the now independent fi.re departments. To the extent the Joint Powers Agreement causes a dissolution of the existing reliefs, you must dissolve the relief associations and pay out the ~ncfits pro rata as defined by the Statute. Minn. Stat. 424A.02, subd. 12 provides for years of service credit for vesting purposes, but allows credit for pension calculation purposes for only those years of service in He new department. You must determine if ~e loint Powers meets the requirements of EQUAL 0PPORT%.'NITY EMPLOYER Mr. Steven A. Sondrall March 6, 1992 ~'~' Page 2 Minn. Stat. 424A.02 to allow for vesting credits for your current members in the separate associations. To the extent you want to merge the two associations, you should determine it' this stature prevents that result. Minn. Stat. §69.021 mandates the mechanism for payment of stare aid. It would appear that the new $olnt Power could receive state aid based on the combined population and net tax capacity. However, to the extent you maintained the existing associations, the existing associations would not be eligible for fire aid, yet the municipalities would be required to amortize and pay annual payments to the existing associations until all benefits are paid out. This can be particularly troublesome since normal cost must be contributed each year as a contribution, even when the fund has achieved 100% funding. The difference in financial impact on the municipalities between effecting a dissolution of the existing associations and maintaining these associations appears to be substantial. Seeking the advice of both an actuary and a pension attorney would scem to be appropriate. Another potential problem relates to differing benefit levels in the two associations. You would need to f'md a method to allocate municipal contributions in a manner deemed fair by both municipalities. I hope this information ~ been helpful. With best regards. Sincerely, . Judi~ M. Johnson O~eral ¢ounseI CRYSTAL FIRE DEP~RTMENT Firefi=hter Certification Level 14 @ FF I Level 17 @ FF II Level 6 @ FF III Level 5 Captains @ FF II 2 Asst. Chiefs @ FF III Medical Response Training I @ EMT Level I @ Paramedic Level Ail remaining firefighters @ 1st Responder Level Haz-Mat Emergency Response Training Ail firefighters at Operational Level 3 fire officers at Technician's Level CRYSTAL FIRE DEPARTMENT 1992 BUDGET SUMMARY Personal Services: Wages $151,188 Vol. Pension 44,190 Workers Comp. 24,071 Misc. 3.180 $222,629 $222,629 Supplies, Repairs, Maint. 15,985 Insurance: Property 1,100 Fire Vehicles 5,750 Operation 1.800 $ 8,650 8,650 Other Services and Charges 29,066 Capital Outlay 2.000 TOTAL ANNUAL BUDGET $278~330 1991 ~XPEN$~$ FOR NEW HOPE FIRE & FIRE PREVENTION FIRE FIRE PREV TOTAL F/T WAGES $37,060 $21,400 $58,460 P/T WAGES $129,679 $129,679 F/T OVERTIME $1,185 $864 $2,049 HEALTH · W.C. (FOR $5,202 $2,655 $7,857 FUIJ. TIME) $0 F/F WORKERS COMP $16,917 $16,917 VAC/SICK/HOL $5,030 $2,898 $7,928 P~RA $5,727 $2,841 $8,$68 TOTAL $200,800 $30,658 $231,458 OPERATION SUPPLY $10,676 $425 $11,101 PHYSICA3.S F/F'S $2,625 $2,625 MILEAGE $703 $703 COMMUNICATIONS $8,545 $8,545 TRANSPORTATION $51,168 $51,168 UTILITIES $23,6~4 $23,654 ~LDING RENT/iL $4,525 $3,114 $7,639 TRNG $7,893 $323 $8,216 CONTRACTS $205 $205 TOTAL $310,429 $35,223 $345,652 $o ACT FROM 91 $317,826 $35,~91 $~53',417 CITY, CRYSTAL 4141 Douglas Drive North, Crystal, MN 55422-1696 · 537-8421 ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE Memorandum DATE: March 4, 1992 TO: Jack Irving, Crystal Councilmember and Mayor Pro-Tem Gary Joselyn, Crystal Councilmember Kevin McGinty, CrYstal Fire Chief Steve Longaecker, Crystal Fire Department Justin Anderson, Citizen Member Ed Erickson, New Hope Mayor Gary L'Herault, New Hope Councilmember Doug Smith, New Hope Fire Chief Don Fournier, New Hope Fire Department Rusty Demeules, Citizen Member Frank Quisenberry, Committee Facilitator Michael Barone, Crystal Employee-Committee Staff FROM: Jerry Dulgar, City Manager of Crystal Dan Donahue, City Manager of New Hope SUBJECT: Fire Department Consolidation Committee Meeting A joint meeting with members of the City of Crystal and the City of New Hope for the Fire Department Consolidation Committee will be held on Tuesday, March 10, 1992 at 7 p.m. at Crystal City Hall 4141 Douglas Drive Council Chambers. Please call me (Jerry) at 537-8421 to let me know if you will not be in attendance. FIRE DEPARTMENT CONSOLIDATION COMMITTEE AGENDA FOR MARCH 10, 1992 MEETING 1. Call to order: Co-Chair Jack Irving Co-Chair Ed Erickson, New Hope Mayor 2. Roll Call 3. Approval of February 25, 1992 minutes 4. Report from Fire Chiefs 5. Decide upon time-line for "Goals of Committee", designate sub-committees and assignments for work in order to satisfy "Goals". 6. Other business 7. Agree on date and select a site within City of New Hope for April meeting: Tuesday, April 14, 1992 8. Adjournment FIRE DEPARTMENT CONSOLIDATION MEETING MINUTES Tuesday, February 25, 1992 New Hope Fire Station 7:00 p.m. 4251 Xylon Avenue No~'th New Hope, MN 55428 I. Fall to Ordpr The Fire Department Consolidation Committee was called to order by New Hope Mayor Ed Erickson at 7:20 p.m. The meeting started late due to the tour of the New Hope Fire Station. Present: Jack Irving, Crystal Mayor Pro-Tem Jerry Dulgar, Crystal City Manager Kevin McGinty, Crystal Fire Chief Steve Longaecker, Crystal Fire Dept. Justin Anderson, Crystal Citizen Member Ed Erickson, New Hope Mayor Gary L'Herault, New Hope Councilmember Dan Donahue, New Hope City Manager Doug Smith, New Hope Fire Chief Don Fournier, New Hope Citizen Member Frank Quisenberry, Committee Facilitator Mike Barone, Committee Staff Absent: Gary Joselyn, Crystal Councilmember Rusty Demeules, New Hope Citizen Member It was moved by Jerry Dulgar and seconded by Gary L'Herault to approve the minutes, as submitted, from the January 14, 1992 meeting. Motion carried. IV. Mission Statement Frank Quisenberry facilitated this process. Frankread the "Visioning Exercise Summary" done at the November 1991 meeting. The group captured these themes from this exercise: Daytime response; Common Code Enforcement; High profile department; Equipment; Common Territory with resources; Customer satisfaction; Management/leadership/Positive work culture; Training; Fire Prevention/Education; Long-term Planning; Size of department with efficient .use of resources; Cost effective department; Ability to attract/keep highly qualified firefighters. Frank also re-read the "Concerns of the Committee Members" done at the November 1991 meeting. A three-fold statement of Mission for the committee emerged from these concerns, which will include the purpose of the committee, the customers served, and what the committee plans to do to justify its existence. M~ssion Statement The joint Fire Services Consolidation Committee, comprised of members from both the City of Crystal and City of New Hope, propose to gather data and information, develop criteria to evaluate the data and inf6rmation gathered, analyze this data and information, and then make recommendations to the respective City Councils as to the feasibility, extent, and cost-effectiveness of consolidating fire services between the Cities of Crystal and New Hope. Goa~s of the Committee 1. Gather current data on Resources. Most of the data that needs to be gathered falls into these major categories: A. Equipment/Maintenance B. Labor/Skills/Training C. Emergency Responses D. Fire Prevention 2. Develop criteria to review/analyze data by~ involving the major stakeholders in the process: City Councils, Fire Departments, citizens in both communities, and outside organizations and agencies that set forth standards to be met in operating a combined ~ department. Information from previous fire department consolidations in the region would be beneficial to our process, as well. 3. S~mmarize, analyze, and make recommendations that could be incorporated into a long range plan as to the future needs of a combined fire department. V. Report from Fire Chiefs Kevin McGinty and Doug Smith presented some information to the committee members, using some overhead projections, to show currently what each department has for major equipment, the age of the equipment, an organization chart, and an overview of each department's appropriations for the past few years. Committee members expressed a desire to see "apples" compared to "apples" in order to further evaluate the finances of each department for the next joint meeting. Information wanted from the financial reports would concern salaries, training expenses, response times, number of calls, contributions toward benefits and relief associations, etc. VI. No other business VII. Next Meeting Next joint meeting will be held on Tuesday, March 10, 1992 at Crystal City Hall at 7:00 p.m. The committee agreed to meet the second Tuesday of each month. This meeting deviated from our initial plans to meet on the second Tuesday in order to accommodate Facilitator Frank Quisenberry. VIII. Ad~ourn6ent It was moved by Jack Irving and seconded by Kevin McGinty to adjourn the meeting. The meeting adjourned at 9=10 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Michael Barone DEMOGRAPHICS ' ' CITY OF , CITIES CITY OF , , ' NEW HOPE CRYSTAL , ' COMBINED POPULATION 23,788 21,853 45,641 ('90 EST) AREA OF CITY 6.0 sq.mi. 5.8 sq.mi. 11.6 sq.mi. HOUSEHOLDS 9700 8400 18,100 VALUATION Total Market $689,653,500 $729,518,500 $1,419,172,000 Value ('91) Tax $11,951,304 $18,152,020 $30,103,324 Capacity MILES OF 99 mi. 102 mi. 201 mi. STREETS FIRE DEPARTMENT PERSONNEL CRYSTAL FIRE DEPARTMENT - One career Chief (Department Head) - One part-time Fire Inspector - 40 paid on-call Firefighters (50 authorized) Fire Officers accountable to Fire Chief. Fire Chief reports to City Manager. Fire Department functions under old "by-law type" system. NEW HOPE FIRE DEPARTMENT New Hope operates with a Director of. Fire & Safety who is a Department and is responsible for the following: - Fire Department & Inspections - Building Department & Inspections - General Inspections (Zoning, Mechanical, Plumbing, Signs) - City Community Health Inspections - Code Compliance Inspections - City Emergency Management Coordinator - City Safety Coordinator The Department of Fire & Safety has three full time inspectors, part time sanitarian, and one and one half clerical ~ personnel. The Fire Department is made up of one Assistant Chief, two Captains; two lieutenants, one Rescue Lieutenant. Total membership of the Fire Department is 37. CITY OF CRYSTAL ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE Fire Chief .'Fire Inspector I IOeputy Chief/ I ,:. , : [Training Officer [ Officer/Captain [Day cap, tail---] [Night Captain!'] I i.,'[ iiiP't,u~n Day Captain [ .... . _N~ght [ ~;;~i':~r;}:n-I[ FNT[:~i:~:;:s°n [I s°~thStationI SouthStatio2 I I Firefighters ,, j F .... [ Firefighters J CITY OF NEW ttOPE ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE , Fire ~ Safety Engineer Secretary · Coordinator - Inspections Sanitarian Inspections '~ I,~ Training Office[ Coordinator ) ) ) FIRE FACILITIES CITY OF CRYSTAL NORTH FIRE STATION, 5354 Douglas Drive North - Total Square Footage: 9,176 - 4 Apparatus Bays for room for up to 7 vehicles - Apparatus assigned - Two fire pumpers - One aerial truck - One light rescue vehicle - One utility vehicle - Office space, kitchen, lounge, and 2nd floor training facility SOUTH FIRE STATION, 4101 Douglas Drive North - Total Square Footage: 7,300 - 3 Apparatus Bays with room for up to 6 vehicles - Apparatus assigned - Two fire pumpers - One light rescue - One inspector/station vehicle - One Fire Chief's vehicle - Office space, kitchen, lounge South Station also provides office space for Fire Chief, Fire Inspector and shared office for South Station Fire Officers, Training Officers, and Relief Association. CITY OF NEW HOPE NEW HOPE FIRE STATION, 4251 Xylon Avenue North - Total Square Footage: 20,000 + This facility is centrally located in the City of New Hope, and is equipped witha Emergency Operations Center, Gun Range, Meeting-Training Room, Vehicle Maintenance Area, and adequate Apparatus Storage. EQUIPMENT CRYSTAL NEW HOPE VEHICLE & YEARS VEHICLE & YEARS YEAR BUILT LEFT YEAR BUILT LEFT '78 PUMPER 11 '61 PUMPER 0 (1250 GPM) ( 750 GPM) '80 PUMPER 13 '65 PUMPER 0 (1250 GPM) (1000 GPM) '90 PUMPER 23 '71 PUMPER 4 (1250 GPM) (1250 GPM3~. '90 PUMPER 23 '76 PUMPER 9 (1250 GPM) (1250 GPM) NO mini-pumper '81 MINI-PUMPER 5-10 ( 30O GPM) '73 AERIAL SCOPE 11-16 NO aerial scope '84 LIGHT RESCUE 2 '87 HEAVY RESCUE 10-15 '85 LIGHT RESCUE 3 , ! ! '79 UTILITY TRUCK 0 '88 STATION WAGON 6 '89 PICK-UP 3 '88 CAR (CHIEF) 1 '89 CAR (CHIEF) 2 MAXIMUM life-span for equipment: PUMPERS 25 years MINI-PUMPERS 15-20 years AERIALS 30-35 years LIGHT RESCUE 10 years HEAVY RESCUE 20-25 years STATION WAGON 10 years PICK-UP 5-7 years CARS 5 years APPROPRIATIONS FOR 1990, 1991, AND 1992 CRYSTAL FIRE DEPARTMENT '90 ACTUAL '91 ACTUAL '92 ACTUAL ITEM PERSONAL SERVICES $129,381 $149,169 $151,188 SUPPLIES, REPAIRS, MAINT. $10,678 $16,085 $15,985 OTHER SERVICES & CHARGES $55,032 $23,996 $29,066 CAPITAL OUTLAY $3,544 $2,000 $2,000 TOTAL ANNUAL BUDGET $198,635 $191,250 $198,239 NEW HOPE FIRE DEPARTMENT '90 ACTUAL '91 ACTUAL '92 ACTUAL ITEM PERSONAL SERVICES FIRE & SAFETY $181,628 $185,543 $185,746 FIRE PREVENTION $57,308 $65,261 $45,576 SUPPLIES, REPAIRS, MAINT. FIRE & SAFETY $12,230 $18,000 $20;000 FIRE PREVENTION $76 $1,600 $1,600 OTHER SERVICES & CHARGES FIRE SAFETY $80,016 $73,407 $99,795 FIRE PREVENTION $5,314 $6,409 $6,781 CAPITA~ OUTLAY FIRE & SAFETY $312 $2,450 $2,450 FIRE PREVENTION $0 $0 $0 TOTAL ANNUAL BUDGET FIRE & SAFETY $274,186 $279,400 $307,991 FIRE PREVENTION $62,698 $73,270 $53,957 COMBINED $336,884 $352,670 $361,948 definition: OTHER SERVICES & CHARGES include: Professional Services Rentals Other Contractual Items Training & Subscriptions Communications Maintenance Transportation Misc. Contractual Items Advertising Repairs Utilities FIRE DEPARTMENT STATISTICS CITY OF CRYSTAL CRYSTAL YEAR 1989 1990 1991 TOTALS RESPONSES 354 419 483 1,256 FIRE LOSS $261,041 $385,750 $279,300 $926,091 CITY OF NEW HOPE NEW HOPE YEAR 1989 I990 1991 TOTALS RESPONSES 548 580 601 1,729 FIRE LOSS $286,575 $180,684 $279,140 $746,399 COMBINED TOTALS TOTAL RESPONSES 902 999 1,084 2,985. TOTAL FIRE LOSS $547,616 $566,434 $558,440 $1,672,490 DF~P/~. POP. ~ STA. ~ ~ OTHER Golden 23,000 3 4 1 Heavy Resc~e/Comma~ Valley Centennial 15,000 39 3 4 0 3-Med. Rescue Maple Grove 42,000 36 3 5 1 Heavy. Rescue/Commar Haz-Mat Truck Brooklyn 29,000 9 2 3 I Mini-Pumper Center w/pump Two Rescue/Salvage Brooklyn 56,000 27 3 4 1 Mini Pumper Park w/pump Plymouth 51,000 35 3 5 I 2 Light Rescue 100'w/pmp I Haz-Mat Truck 55'w/pmp Robbinsdale 15,000 3 i 3 1 - 75' Heavy Rescue/Comma~ Snorkel i Heavy Rescue Fridley 30,000 11.3 3 4 100' w/pmp Haz-Mat Truck CITY CRYSTAL 4141 Douglas Drive North · Crystal, MN 55422-1696 · 537-8421 ADMINISTRATWE OFFICE Memorandum DATE: January 8, 1992 TO: Pete Meintsma, Mayor of Crystal Jack Irving, COuncilmember Frank Quisenberry, Facilitator Kevin McGinty, Fire Chief Steve Longaecker, Fire Department Justin Anderson, Citizen Member Ed Erickson, Mayor of New Hope Gary L'Herault, Councilmember Doug Smith, Fire Chief Don Fournier, Fire Department Rusty Demeules, Citizen Member FROM: Jerry Dulgar, City Manager of Crystal Dan Donahue,. City Manager of New Hope SUBJECT: Joint Meeting Tuesday, January 14, 1992 A joint meeting with members of the City of Crystal and the City of New Hope Fire Consolidation Committee will be held on T~es~ay, January 14, 1992 at 7 p.m. at Crystal City Hall 4141 Douglas Drive Council Chambers. Please call me (Jerry) at 537-8421 to let me know if you will not be in attendance. FIRE DEPARTMENT CONSOLIDATION COMMITTEE AGENDA 1. Call to Order: Co-chair Jack Irving, Crystal Mayor Pro Tem Co-chair Ed Erickson, New Hope Mayor. 2. Roll Call/Introductions. 3. Approval of Agenda. 4. Approval of November 26, 1991 meeting minutes. -issues/agenda items/concerns of committee -behavioral ground rules for committee 5. Review S~mmary of "Visioning" exercise. 6. Watch "Paradigms" video. 7. Construct Mission Statement and objectives for committee. 8. Other business. 9. Select date and time for next meeting to be held at New Hope City Hall. 10. Adjournment. ~ FIRE DEPARTMENT CONSOLIDATION COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES NOvember 26, 1991 New Hope City Hall 7:00 p.m. 4401 Xylon Ave. No. New Hope, MN 55428 Call to Order The Fire Department Consolidation Committee was called to order by Temporary Chair and Facilitator Frank Quisenberry at 7:00 p.m. Roil Call/Introductions Present: Jack Irving, CrystaI Councilmember Elmer Carlson, Crystal Councilmember (substituting for Betty Herbes, Crystal Mayor) Jerry Dulgar, Crystal City Manager ~ Kevin McGinty, Crystal Fire Chief ~" '~ ' Steve Longaecker, Crystal Fire Department '~ Justin Anderson, Citizen Member Ed Erickson, New Hope Mayor · Gary L'Herault, New Hope Councilmember Dan Donahue, New Hope City Manager Doug Smith, New Hope Fire Chief Don Fornier, New Hope Fire Department ~ Frank Quisenb.~erry, crystal citizen, Temporary ~?~'~ ~ Chair and ~acilitator Michael Barone, CryStal Employee - Consolidation Committee Staff. Absent: Rusty Demeule~'" New Hope Citizen Member ?Temporary Chair Frank QUisenberry. expressed an interest in accomplishing three items for the initial meeting: I i introductions, II. Bring~.~forth the issues , agenda i~ms and concerns for the purpose of possibly sharing services and/or merging the two fire departments. III. Organize the committee on what' i.t~ intends to do in future meetings. ~?~ ~.c I. Introductions were done by going around the table, stating~your name and position/interest in being on the committee. II. Concerns of the Committee Members: 1. How serious is the discussion? What "humps" will the committee have to overcome (pay, benefits, pensions). 2. How do we provide a different/better level of service at or near the ex]~enditures/resources that currently exist? 3. Can we have a cost savings and not sacrifice existing services? " ~' 4. If cost savings not found, would we continue to pursue consolidation? 5. A list of advantages and disadvantages needs to be listed. This list should provide some answers as t° whether or not consolidation is feasible. 6. If merger is currently feasible, should we set-up a plan to implement a merger five years down the road, as an example? 7. We shouldthoroughly study the situation, maintaining a continuum.of cooperation that currently exists. Also, study some of the other fire department~mergers that have taken place in the last 5-10 years. Ex:' Anoka/Champlin and Centennial. 8. Look at the possibi~'it~ of a Joint Powers Agreement to facilitate the consolidation process. 9. Maintain the trust and respect that currently exists within both fire departments and maintain the congenial relationship that currently exists between both ~i~ cities' fire departments. 10. Look at impact of a possible consolidation on pay, ~ benefits, pensions, relief associations, etc. 11. Look at balancing any consolidation and cost savings versus the morale and resources of the firefighters. (job security) 12. In light of the many demands placed on fire departments and cities in the past few years by ~. the federal government, state government and county government, how can a different level of ~ service be provided to the citizens of our ,- communities? 13. How can a continuous improvement of service be achieved in the future, keeping in mind the quality in perception by the public, and the quality in fact (dollars and cents)? 14. Compare the by-laws of both departments so all items of interest are covered and approved in a set of by-laws for a proposed consolidated department. III. Behavioral Ground rules for Committee: The following behavioral ground rules were agreed upon by the committee members: - Open meetings, run informally - allowing for a free flow of information. - No hidden agendas by any of the committee members throughout the process. - Roughly a two hour time limit for each meeting, with one meeting per month. Also, a review to assess the progress of the committee should occur at six months, or around May 1992. - Okay to bring in outside information sources and guests that have expertise in certain, pertinent areas relevant to the group's discussion. - Recognize that the position you currently hold in your organization requires that you take certain positions and responsibilities on the issues at hand. - Committee should function as a "Committee of the Whole." The only subcommittees allowed will be the ones created and designated by the whole group; no informal subcommittees allowed. The purpose here is to avoid any type of "lobbying" aspect to emerge as a hindrance to the progress of the group. - By consensus, it was approved by'~e committee that Mayor Ed Erickson of New Hope and Mayor pete Meintsma of C~stal or his desi~ee would be co- chairs of the co~ittee, and that the responsibility of ~nning ~e meetings would rotate wi~ the location site month to mon~ between ~e two cities. - By consensus, the meeting minutes and agendas would be prepared by ~e staff me. er to ~is co~ittee, Michael Barone, C~stal Employee. Respectfully S~mitted Janua~ 7, 1992, Michael Barone VisiOginq.Exercise~Id~as~'. The following are the responses to the Visioning Exercise. The ~xercise was: book.out into the future five years from now and describe ~hat~he fire services in both cities would look like if it is of the best or highest quality it could be? The responses are anonymous and in no particular order: _ ?~¥.~ For firefighters, more training done jointly with mQtual aid groups to allow more automatic response to ~Pecific calls~ Also, to eliminate territorial bouhdaries of cities. For citizens, two to three c~les combined so it s easier to add people and to'~ave join~dispatching. A~D,9opie move, they d0~ft have to'leave th~servi~"Of~retirement programs. o Fire Safety/Public Education - would not have boundaries, and would be don~e in ail grades. No limits Code enforcement same fox, both cities. More flreflghters available for daytime hours; ~more training,~ Also, on equipment replacement and ii..~furbishmen~lan put in place and followed - ~atever the cost. a Daytime ~an~"~afet~ co~rages have become less ~ o ~ ~nd less ~a~-~ua~a ~'~f~r a~daytime responses go. I would hope that a merger~ould guarantee the 3a ~ded, Rer~n~el ~,~.~dequa%~ly perform the duties 1,9 .... The tools,w~.b~ have combined reso rces that ~ would crea~.~.~oln~ Powers Agreement to create a plan for a co~ned f~re department that would then create a 20 - 30 year long range plan on equipment ~ = ~anpow~K, etc. The project would be to .~ ~. ~=.~, section th~it~ ~sg,.~.~here is a minimum number of 2 , stations tha%'~o~Id.~vide the maximum services ~ ~ to'~;the citizens. Oepa ments S me but wit =oint Powers Agreement to~'~ha~ e~quipme~t and maintenance on equipment. Also, ad~ one s~tmon. Fire Department would be highly=~ible in the community in order to achieve high customer satisfaction. Cost effective, with a high level of customer satisfaction. Department should be timely, adequate and competent. Citizens should~-.be satisfied. A department with reliable, up-to-date apparatus. A structure which would have the proper Chain Of command with officers who are capable management people and experienced'firefighters. Adept~ith good morale andteam attitude, dedicated~o ~he protection of servicing the people and ci~ties involved. Still New Hope~Crystal - but one ?"~department. Adept With up-to-date equipment, no redundancy - effective and efficient, daytime~Tforce, high level of response and training in hazardous substances, personnel compensated on basis o'~ participation, 'diversified levels of~:~esDonse, ~dedicated to 9rc~m~.~ing fire prevention as once level of response,' optimai and ~imely supervision and management, fire protection system, sa~isfactio~ of semite, highest ~level of se~ice, ~eam attitude. '~ ~ ~ ~ People from around the~State coming to visit our cities to lea~ the secrets of a successful merger project. Fire pers~el are ~e ones most eager to talk about the process and wondering to themselves "how did we ever get along before the merger?". Training~ and morale would be at an all- time high ann"all' i~ac~9~plished~at a measurable cost savings ~ ..... 'One large dep~m~n~ W~~ditl~l stations, modern ~tate-Of=the=a~'m~Ipment' and training, a co~ination of fu~l ~nd .pa~-time~firef~ghters with c~ntral a~i~is~r~on of a Joint Powers Board, made up O~ me~eP~~ of~.pach co,unities' .Fifty %o eighty ~0n~depa~ment, operating from ~a minim~ n~er~6~?~t~t~ions, with approximately 2 p~pers per station, ~' ladder company, I medical response group, 1 specific company to deal with hazardous materials? Also have 1 training center, ~ good salaries and I a~ini~trative =ehte~,. retir~m~ progra~S-~x: individual accounts), 1 fire }n~ectio~'._. . ~ program and co~on., fire codes.