HomeMy WebLinkAbout1A, Lake Johanna Fire Budget, Capital Facilities Need Study
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EN HILLS
MEMORANDUM
DATE:
March 17, 2008
TO:
Mayor and City Council
Jim Willis, Interim City Administrat~
Greg Hoag, Public Works Director
FROM:
SUBJECT:
Lake Johanna Fire Department, Needs Assessment Study
BACKGROUND
In July 2007 the Lake Johanna Fire Department Board of Directors reviewed the Fire
Departments 2008 budget requests. Included in the budget was a request to add a full time
Deputy Fire Chief position. The Cities of Arden Hills and North Oaks expressed concern about
the increases in the proposed budget. Board member McClung suggested looking at this new
position as part of a longer range staffing and service plan for the department.
At the August 2007 Board of Directors meeting Chief Boehlke presented a revised budget with
the Full Time Deputy Chief position eliminated. The Board adopted this revised budget. Also at
the August Board meeting the Chief presented the Board with the first draft of the departments
Long Range Plan document. (Attached) This document was prepared at the Board of Directors
request to put future budget requests into a framework and long range plan for the Department.
A Department wide Needs Assessment is one of the top priorities in the Long Range Plan.
Board Member McClung suggested that the Needs Assessment become the first priority. Other
Board members concurred. It was the consensus of the Board to begin the process of developing
a request for proposals (RFP) for this study. A draft RFP was discussed by the Board at their
November 2007 and January 2008 meetings. (Draft RFP Attached) In early February 2008 the
draft RFP was circulated to the Board of Directors with the intention of finalizing and sending it
out for proposals. Board Member McClung requested time to present the draft to the Arden
Hills City Council for review prior to being sent out for proposals.
Studies of this type are becoming very useful for Fire Departments throughout the United States
as the number of calls for service increase and it becomes harder to find available firefighters.
These studies typically review station locations as they relate to where firefighters live, overall
response protocols from existing fire stations, review and make recommendations on alternative
Page 2
staffing plans, station locations, and equipment. Estimated costs of alternative plans to address
issues identified in the study will also be included.
Attached for review are the Executive Summaries of some recent studies done for other
Minnesota Fire Departments. (2002 City ofRoseville, 2005 City of St. Cloud, 2007 City of St.
Paul) The primary components of the draft Lake Johanna Fire Department study include:
· Identify fire service level needs and priorities.
· Develop alternative staffing plans to best meet these needs.
. Evaluate positives and negatives, as well as costs associated with future staffing plans.
· Identify potential locations for station # I and evaluate the locations in relation to
alternative staffing scenarios.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
This is an unbudgeted item for 2008. While at this point the cost for a needs assessment is
unknown, a study could cost $30,000 - $40,000. The 200 I cost for the Roseville study was
$28,992. Roseville has recently authorized an update to their 2001 study for a cost of $9,778. If
Council is supportive of moving forward with this study, possible funding sources include the
Public Safety Capital Fund as well as the General Fund. The Arden Hills share of the cost for
any study would match the cost allocation formula (28%) used for the Fire Departments
operations and capital budgets.
COUNCIL ACTION REQUESTED
The Fire Department Needs Study will be on the March 26, 2008 Board of Directors meeting
agenda. We are looking for City Council input on the RFP. Below is a list of questions to
consider and provide feedback, as well as any other items Council would like to see included in
the RFP if approved.
· Is Council comfortable with the language in the draft RFP?
· Does Council support the Board of Directors moving forward with the RFP at this time?
· Is Council generally supportive of funding a Needs Assessment? Recognizing that any
proposal the Board of Directors would consider would be brought to the Council for final
approval.
Lake Johanna Fire Department
Long Range Plan
Hire a Fulltime Deputy Chief
within 1 year
We have a need to hire a fulltime Deputy Chief to help with administrative and
management duties. This position would supervise our Duty Crew, Monitor Staffing
levels. Coordinate Truck maintenance and repairs. Take over the Training Officer
duties. Assist with budgeting and personnel issues. Anticipated cost $86,000
Duty Officer
September 2007
Have a Chief Officer assigned to monitor all department calls and respond to any call
they deem necessary. This is to ensure that the necessary resources are deployed to the
incident scene and assume the role of incident commander as necessary. This program
would start out covering weekends at first and possibly extend to week nights in the
future if needed. The Duty Officer will use the Fire Marshals vehicle initially, and in
2008 we would keep the current Car 3 and it would be used as the Duty Officer Vehicle
on a permanent basis. No initial cost to cover the weekend Duty Officer.
Restructure Officer Positions
2008 - 2009
Weare going to restructure our chief officer positions; we would go from 4 District
Chief's to 2 District Chiefs. Each District Chief would be responsible for two stations
and a geographic area. There duties would include Station and Truck maintenance,
personnel issues. Each Station would have a Senior Captain designated as a Station
Commander, the station commanders would take care of the day to day operations of
their station and report to a District Chief. No additional operational cost anticipated.
Capital Fund Account
2008 - 2009
Change the current capital funding plan to a new plan that would have each city pay the
fire department a set amount of money each year to pay for all capital expenses, including
Truck replacement, Station repairs and equipment replacement. The money would be put
in a capital replacement fund and the Board of Directors would approve all expenditures.
This would help even out the costs to all the cities and allow the Fire Department some
flexibility with repairs and replacement.
8/16/2007
1
Cooperative Service Agreements
as needed
Continue to improve service levels by signing Automatic Mutual Aid Agreements with
surrounding Cities. Participate in planning for Department mergers and possible
consolidations. Eliminate city boundaries and utilize the County Dispatch center to its
full potential by dispatching the closest stations to maximize service delivery.
Hire Fulltirne Day Duty Crew Positions
2008 - 2010
Transition part time position to fulltime positions when day staffing becomes difficult.
The fulltime positions would assist with daytime public fire education, station and truck
maintenance, station cleaning, code enforcement and other assigned duties such as SCBA
maintenance. ($63,000 per position)
Needs Assessment - Department wide
2009 - 2010
Hire a company to do a needs assessment that includes our entire fire district, evaluating
existing stations and equipment. Look at future needs and evaluate future staffmg plans.
Night Station StaffIng
2008 - 2009
Use existing paid on call Firefighters to staff stations overnight. There is a need to
improve service coverage particularly on Friday and Saturday nights, where poor
response time or lack of available firefighters is a problem. This could be expaoded at
some point to 7 nights a week to allow firefighters to schedule there shift. This could be
a recruiting tool aod provide much better service to all three communities.
One example:
6 firefighters (total) staffing two stations Friday and Saturday nights $101,000
Fire Inspector
2009 - 2011
As TCAAP develops it might be necessary to hire additional help for code enforcement.
This can be accomplished by hiring a duty crew position that would assist the fire
marshal as needed for Code Enforcement activities.
8/16/2007
2
Merit Pay
2009 - 2010
Develop a pay scale that rewards firefighters for increased attendance and higher levels
of training. An example, firefighters that are EMT's get $.50 cents more per call then
first responders, or firefighters that attend 25 - 30% of their assigned calls are paid $12
per call, those attending 30 - 40% of assigned calls are paid $13 per call etc.... No
additional budget cost anticipated.
Level of Service
2009 - 2015
When stations are staffed is it beneficial to expand our levels of service to include Life
Threatening Medical calls such as Heart Attacks, Strokes, Major Bleeds and falls.
Firefighters would receive a base pay for working shifts and would not get additional pay
for calls. No payroll expenses anticipated for the increased service.
Station 1
2010 - 2013
There are many possible options for the fate of Station 1. We can rebuild Station 1 on the
same site at some point. We could move the station further North and East if a site near
affordable housing is identified. If our department were to staff our stations overnight 7
days a week, Station 1 could possibly be eliminated. We could build station 1 on
TCAAP property if it was to be a staffed station. Factors to consider.... ISO, Staffed vs.
non staffed stations
North East Fire Protection Coverage
2010 - 2018
The North and East side of North Oaks is has excessive response times from existing
UFD Stations. Mutual Aid departments are not really any closer to this area then we are.
Continue to work with neighboring Cities to look at possible solutions to Fire and EMS
coverage to North Oaks, White Bear Township and southern Lino Lakes. A fire station is
needed to improve fire protection.
8/16/2007
3
New Technology Implementation
2008 - 2015
Implement new technologies available. On- Line incident reporting, Mobile Computer
Terminals with GPS Mapping, real time call information, and Pre-Plan information.
On-line Inspection reporting, for code enforcement.
Office Assistant/Hnman Resonrces specialist
2011 - 2014
Hire someone to help with general office work and provide much needed HR help in the
office. This is an important position to have with 70 employees.
Regional Training Center
2008-2016
We have had initial discussions with the National Guard representative about the
possibility of finding appropriate land to construct a Regional Training Center. Agencies
from Ramsey County are very interested in having a Regional training site to conduct a
wide variety of training which could include. Live Fire Training, Driving training,
Hazmat training, Tactical and Canine Training. The goal would be to use Federal and
State Grant dollars to build this site.
County Fire District
2010 - 2020
Utilize the county dispatch center, by dispatching the closest stations to a call. This
would essentially erase city boundaries and send the closest stations to a call to provide
the best service to residents. Cities could still own equipment and stations.
Consolidations and Mergers
2010 - 2020
Look at expaoding our current fire district with neighboring cities. This may help save
. on some capital expenses such as trucks, but more importantly provide better service to
part of the Cities that have merged Fire Departments. Cities such as Vadnais Heights,
Little Canada, Roseville and White Bear Township may benefit along with Arden Hills,
Shoreview and North Oaks.
8/16/2007
4
LAKE JOHANNA FIRE DEPARTMENT
REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL-FIRE DEPARTMENT NEEDS
ASSESSMENT
The Lake Johanna Fire Department is seeking a qualified consulting firm to perform a
study of the future staffing needs of the Fire Department aod its relationship to the
delivery of fire service. The primary element of this study is to look at fire service needs
for the next 10+ years and develop alternative staffing plans to best meet these needs.
The staffing plans should include ao analysis of the positives and negatives of each plao
as well as an estimate of the cost of implementing the plan.
Backj!round
The Lake Johanna Fire Department is a private non-profit paid on-call Fire Department
serving the cities of Arden Hills, North Oaks, and Shoreview, Minnesota under a
contractual agreement. These three cities have a combined population of approximately
40,000 people and a service area of about 30 square miles. The current services provided
by the Department include fire suppression, fire inspection, public fire education,
response to all accident with injury calls, as well as responses to cardiac arrests. In
addition, the Department handles most of its continuing training needs in-house.
The Department currently has three full-time employees - Fire Chief, Fire Marshal, and
an Office Maoager, aod fire service is provided by 60 paid on-call firefighters that are
assigned to one of four stations that serve the area. The Department also has a paid on-
call Deputy Chief aod there are paid on-call District Chiefs assigned at each of the four
stations.
The Department currently has a Duty Crew Program to handle daytime response to
emergency calls. The Duty Crew operates Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to
5:00 p.m. and includes 3-4 paid on-call firefighters that are paid an hourly rate for
working this assignment.
The Department's four stations are spread out throughout the service area. Station #2
was reconstructed in the mid-1990's aod Stations #3 and #4 were remodeled in 2005.
Station #3 serves as the headquarters station for the Department aod includes offices for
the Department's full-time staff. Station #1 is currently in need of major
repairs/renovations, or reconstruction. The design and potential location of this station
will likely be influenced by the future staffing plans for the Department. The study
should examine potential location for this station based on the alternative staffing plaos
that are identified. There is also a concern about response time to the northeast portion of
North Oaks. There has been significant new development in this section of the City
including a large senior housing complex that includes both senior apartments and
assisted living units, villa townhouse units, and single-family homes. The study should
also examine possible means of providing better fire service to this area.
Scope of Services
The purpose of the Fire Service Staffing Study is to assist the Lake Johanna Fire
Department, its Board of Directors, aod the cities of Arden Hills, Shoreview and North
Oaks with the following:
)> Identify fire service level needs aod priorities.
)> Developing alternative staffing plans to best meet these needs.
)> Evaluating the positives and negatives, as well as the costs associated with future
staffing plans.
)> Identify potential locations for Station #1 and evaluate the locations in relation to
alternative staffing scenarios.
As part ofthis study, the consultant will need to work closely with the Fire Chief and
other key Department staff, as well as with the Board of Directors, and the City Councils
of the three cities. At a minimum, the consultant will need to:
)> Review the Fire Department's current services and programs and identify possible
future service levels.
)> Understaod the Department's operations, response criteria and service levels.
)> Review the Department's current organizational structure.
)> Tour all Fire Stations aod City response areas.
)> Meet with staff from the three cities to review comprehensive plans for the cities aod
potential for growth.
)> Work closely with the Department staff to identify future staffing/service delivery
alternatives/options.
)> Evaluate and develop estimated costs for implementing staff/service delivery
alternatives including strategies for phasing of the recommendations.
)> Prepare a final report for distribution to the Board of Directors and three cities served
by the Department.
The Lake Johanna Fire Department will provide staff to assist in gathering information
required for the study. The consultaot will work closely with the Fire Chief and Board of
Directors ofthe Department as needed throughout the study. The consultant should
expect to review key assumptions and findings with the Board at appropriate points
throughout the study. The consultaot will also be expected to present aod review the
study with the City Councils of the three cities.
Proposed Requirements
The proposal shall contain:
1. A statement of the Firm's nnderstanding and approach to the study. This
should include a description of the major tasks.
2. A time schedule for completion of the major tasks, including deliverables, and
overall completion of the study.
3. Resumes of key personnel who will be assigned to the project, and ao estimate
of their time on the project.
4. A cost estimate for completion of the project and breakdown by major tasks.
5. A listing ofrecent studies that are similar in scope and complexity that the
firm has completed. The lists should include:
o Project Location
o Project Description
o Contact Person including title, address aod phone number
6. Seven copies of the proposal must be submitted by 4:00 p.m. on Monday,
March 3, 2008 to the address listed below.
SELECTION PROCESS
Any questions regarding the Request for Proposal should be submitted in writing (letter
or email) to the Fire Chief by Thursday, February 21, 2008. Written responses to aoy
questions will be sent to all firms that have either received or requested a copy of the
RFP.
Each proposal will be evaluated based on the consultaots' response to the Request for
Proposal. Emphasis will be placed on, but not be limited to, experience with similar
projects, timeliness of the proposed schedule, project understanding and cost of the
project.
The Selection Review Committee may require additional information during the selection
process. The selection committee may also choose to interview firms prior to making a
selection. Neither the Lake Johanna Fire Department, its Board of Directors, or the cities
of Arden Hills, North Oaks, and Shoreview will be liable for any expense incurred by the
consultaot in preparing or submitting the proposal. The Lake Johanna Fire Department
reserves the right to reject any and all proposals and to waive irregularities on the
proposal.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Final proposals and aoy questions regarding the Request for Proposal should be directed
to:
Tim Boehlke, Fire Chief
Lake Johanna Fire Department
Analysis of Fire Station locations
Roseville Fire Department
FINAL REPORT
January 2002
~ TriData
Analysis of Fire Station Locations
Roseville Fire Department
FINAL REPORT
. Submitted to:
Neal BeetS, City Manager
City of Roseville
2660 Civic Center Drive
Roseville, MN 55113-1899
Submitted by:
TriData Corporation
. .. th
1000 Wilson Blvd., 30 Floor
Arlington, Virginia
(703) 351-8300
Contact: Jim Weed
r'\
~)
January 2002
Roseville Final Report
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ...................................................................................... II
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ....................................................................................11I
I. INTRODUCTION ...,............ ...... ................... .... ..... ..... ......... ...... ......................... 1
The Community .............................................................................................................. 2
The Fire Department ..........,... ......................................................................................... 5
The BudgeL.................................................................................................................... 7
n. FIRE DEPARTMENT OPERATIQNS............................................................... 9
Staffing aod Dispatch Policy ..................................................:....................................... 9
Facilities and Equipment .............................................................................................. 12
Response Times ............................................................................................................ 12
Ill. ANALYSIS OF DEMAND FOR SERVICE .................................................... 22
Current Call V olume..................................................................................................... 22
Forecast Of Future Demaod..........................................................................................28
IV. STATION LOCATIONS ................................................................................ 33
Issues in Selecting Locations....................................................................................;...33
Risk Analysis ................................................................................................................ 34
Station Location Suggestions.. .......... .................... ..... ........... ....... ...... ........ .......... ......... 38
Other Suggestions................... ..... ... ..... ..... ....... ...... ........ .............. ............... ....... ........... 53
Conclusions.................................................. ................................................................. 54
TriData Corporation
January 2002
RoseviHe Final Report
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We would like to thank the members of the Roseville Fire Department for their
cooperation with this study, and give particular thanks to the chief officers who provided
insight into the Department.
Others who deserve special mention for their assistance are the Department of.
Community Development and their GIS division, the Department of Public Works, and
the Finaoce Department.
. We also would like to acknowledge the gnidaoce provided by Neal Beets, City
Manager, Chief Richard Gasaway of the Fire Department, aod Edward Burrell, Finance
Director.
The TriData project staff members and their area of responsibility were:
Philip Schaenman
James Weed
Dr. Charles Jennings
Ruth Barth
Sarah Lathom
Corporate Oversight
Project Manager
Station Location, Demaod Projections, and Analysis
Project Coordination and Support
Report Production
~
TriData Corporation
ii
January 2002
RoseviUe Final Report
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The City of Roseville is a dynamic city located in the heart of the Minneapolis-St.
Paul metropolitan area. Though its population of 33, 690 now is increasing slowly as the
City nears "build-out," a significaot amount of commercial redevelopment continues to
take place. This promises to add even more jobs and establishments to the City's already
impressive concentration of business activity.
The Roseville Fire Department (RFD) is a paid-call organization, under the
leadership of its first career Chief, hired in 1999. It has a corps of officers selected for
- their training, education, experience, and performance. There are maoyexemplary
administrative practices within the Department, aod the organization appears to be
healthy. The average response time for all incidents is 6 minutes from time of dispatch to
arrival on the scene, a respectable time, especially for a paid.call department. The
Department also has an Insurance Services Office (ISO) rating 00, which is exemplary
for this size city.
Like most volunteer or part-time paid organizations, the RFD is facing a shortage
of staffing, particularly in the daytime. The Department has implemented a "staffing"
program whereby members work designated shifts in a station in order to provide an
in:llnediate response to an emergency call. The RFD responds to about 600 incidents
annually.
As the City grows, there is a plan to redevelop the site of Station 1 for other
purposes, which was one of the stimuli for this study. The study had a limited focus,
primarily on station locations, and did not consider strategic issues of staffing or services
provided. It attempted to aoswer a well-defmed question: Where should we locate fire
stations to serve the City under three scenarios: 1) retention of the status quo, with
sporadic "shift crews" according to the availability of part-time employees willing to
work the shifts; 2) implementation of a 24-hour, seven day a week "staffmg" program in
one of the stations; 3) hiring of a small career staff to supplement the part-time
employees.
The study formulated three station location options corresponding to the above
three scenarios that the City presented. Based on our review of the Fire Department,
interviews with City officials and fire department members and staff, and aoalysis using a
TriData Corporation
IU
January 2002
RosevilIe Final Report
Executive Sununary
geographic information system to model scenarios, we have the following
recommendations for each scenario:
.. SCENARIO 1: STATUS QUO - Retain all three stations; move Station I to a
nearby location.
.. SCENARIO 2: 24-HoUR STAFFING WITH PART-TIME EMPLOYEES-
Deactivate but retain Station 2; Relocate Station 1 near its present
location.
.. SCENARlo3: PAID STAFF ADDED TO SUPPLEMENT PART-TIME
EMPLOYEES - Combine Stations 1 and 2 into a new station central to both
current facilities; close Station 2; reduce apparatus holdings.
The analysis considered the accessibility (drive times) of part-time employees to
stations, provide adequate overall emergency response coverage of the City, aod locate
facilities in proximity to demand for service. Any of the above three scenarios could
provide a satisfactory level of service. The City needs to decide on which scenario to
implement. A more complete study of the Fire Department should be conducted in the
near future.
Since the scope of this study was confined to station locations, and although maoy
aspects of the Department were reviewed in arriving at our conclusions, the
recommendations are confined to Chapter Four: Station Locations.
TriData Corporation
IV
January 2002
Saint Cloud, Minnesota
Fire Protection Evaluation
and
Master Plan
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY DOClJ'MENT
March, 200:'
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
Table Of Contents
Table Of Figures .....................................................................................................................1
Executive Review Document .................................................................................................2
Purpose of This Report ............................................................................................................2
Deployment Model....................................................................................................................3
Facilities........................................... ................... ................ .......... .................... .......... ....3
Apparatus.......................................... ...................... ..................... ...................................7
Staffing...................... .............................................. ................... ................................ .....9
Organizational Structure ............... ............... .............. ......... ............................... .................... 13
Fiscal Projection ..................................................................................................................... 16
Short and Mid- Term Strategies..............................................................................................18
Administrative and Management Strategies .................................................................18
Capital Asset Strategies ......................................................... .......................................19
Emergency Service Delivery Strategies ........................................................................19
Training Program Strategies........................................................................................ .20
Fire Prevention Strategies............................ .................... ............................................ .20
Table Of Fiqures
Figure 1: Long-term Facility Deployment Strategy .................................................................................5
Figure 2: Long-term Deployment Strategy Performance Comparison....................................................6
Figure 3: Mid-Term Staffing Strategy.......................................................... .............. ..............................9
Figure 4: Long-Term On-Duty Staffing Strategy ................................................................................... 10
Figure 5: Long-term Staffing Strategy Benchmark Comparisons .........................................................11
Figure 6: Long-Term Strategy Organizational Structure.......................................................................15
Figure 7: Long-Term Strategy Cost Projections ...................................................................................17
1
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
Executive Review Document
Purpose of This Report
The full report described in this Executive Review Document details the study of fire protection
services in Saint Cloud, Minnesota. Specifically, the study involves the Saint Cloud Fire Department.
The first section of that report provides a thorough and detailed evaluation of the agency, its
management, its assets, its operations, and its service delivery. The second section identifies the
anticipated changes in the population, risk factors, and service demand that will be faced by the Saint
Cloud Fire Department in the future. The final two sections of the report provide feasible strategies for
changes in the overall organizational structure of the fire department, as well as recommendations for
specific changes in the deployment of facilities, apparatus, and staff necessary to achieve the target
levels of performance identified by the communities. Short and mid-term strategies provide
recommendations for organizational or program changes that can be implemented within the next one
to three years.
The staff of the Saint Cloud Fire Department and the City have provided a great deal of written and
verbal information to us. Many of the staff members have been generous in their effort to provide us
with accurate and complete information. We are grateful for their able assistance and cooperation
throughout this process.
We recognize that information, by its very nature, is often incomplete as it changes from moment to
moment. Every effort is made though, to compile data that are as comprehensive and as accurate as
possible. Our information gathering process includes a broad evaluation checklist of each
organization, measuring results against acceptable industry standards and good practices. Whenever
possible, we make quantifiable comparisOns to other fire service organizations. Checklists and
documentation are followed up by one-on-one interviews with key staff members from the agency and
every program area.
The full Fire Protection Master Plan report document is over 150 pages in length, with 56 charts,
maps, or tables and contains detailed analysis and recommendations of both a policy and operational
nature. This Executive Review Document is intended to provide those elected and appointed officials
who have policy-level responsibility for this fire protection system with the primary findings of the
report. In this document, detailed analysis is summarized and operational-level recommendations are
not included. Instead, the intent is to allow policymakers to focus on critical issues and decisions
affecting the future health and welfare of the fire protection system in the City of Saint Cloud.
2
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
A Fire Protection Master Plan is intended to provide strategies that are long-term in nature. It is the
job of a Master Plan to identify the most critical issues the agency will face over the long haul, out as
much as twenty years in the future.
We have identified the following list of the three most critical issues that must be addressed by the
department's long-term growth strategy:
. The department's organizational structure is divisive and dysfunctional. The lack of
integration between career and paid-on-call resources is inefficient and produces
inconsistent performance to the customers based on geography or time of day.
. The department's facility deployment is currently incapable of achieving the response
time performance target identified by the department and this situation will worsen as
growth continues in the south and southwestern parts of the current city limits.
. The department's staffing level is currently incapable of consistently producing
adequate personnel for a four-person company response, unable to achieve a two-in
and two-out initial incident action sequence, and unable to handle a medium risk
incident simultaneous with any other emergency calls. As call volume increases and
growth in the community occurs, this situation will worsen.
In response to these critical issues, we have developed the following long-term strategy for the
department. The strategy describes the future organizational structure of the agency, the necessary
additions to its capital assets (facilities and apparatus), and a staffing level that will support the
intended selVice delivery objectives.
Deployment Model
The following long-term resource deployment strategies are intended to allow the St. Cloud Fire
Department to continue its existing levels of selVice as growth in the community continues and, where
possible, to improve the level of selVice toward its target performance objectives.
Facilities
The long-term strategy for deployment of facilities calls for a distribution of seven fire stations,
including the airport facility.
3
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
Under this strategy, use of the current Fire Station #6 (Volunteer South Station) would be
discontinued and a replacement Station #6 would be constructed further to the south on County Road
75, just south of its intersection with 33"' Street. This station would greatly improve the department's
ability to serve growth in south sections of the City along the County Road 75 corridor leading to 1-94.
At the same time, significant existing redundancy or overlap between the capabilities of the existing
Station # 6 and Station #1 would be eliminated. Based on our evaluation of the current facilities
(located in "Objective Seven- Capital Assets"), Station #6 is rated in poor condition and was identified
as being unsuitable for major renovation or addition.
In addition to the relocation of Station #6, the strategy calls for the eventual addition of a new station,
which we have designated Station #7, in the vicinity of County Road 136 approximately one-half mile
north of 33'. Street. This facility would greatly improve the department's ability to serve growth in the
southwestern sections of the City.
The following figure shows this long-term deployment strategy and the general five-minute response
capability from each of the proposed locations.
4
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
Figure 1: Long-term Facility Deployment Strategy
Note: Strategy shown with proposed future 3:r Street bridge over Mississippi Rive in place
This deployment strategy demonstrates a significant improvement in projected target-level service
performance when compared to the current deployment system. The percentage of city land area
falling within a five-minute response time of a fire station is shown in the following chart, with a
benchmark comparable showing the current deployment.
5
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
Figure 2: Long-term Deployment Strategy Performance Comparison
80%
100%
60%
40%
20%
0%
The proposed strategy shows nearly a twenty percent increase in the amount of the city.s land area
falling within the target response time capability.
Timing of new or replacement facilities is always a concern. The deployment strategy represents
facility locations that we anticipate will be needed during the twenty-year life of this master plan. It is
not our intent to suggest that all facilities are needed today. We anticipate the relocation of existing
Station #6 would occur first and in conjunction with the need to create full-time staffing capability at
the southern station. This project should have a 2 to 4 year target completion time period.
In addition to this facility relocation, the ability to staff Station #5 in the future would require changes at
that facility. Our evaluation of the facility indicated it was in good condition and suitable for continuing
use as a full-service fire station. Unfortunately, the building does not have adequate living facilities for
on-duty staffing. Currently, however, there is a large portion of this building occupied by another
agency.
It is our recommendation that negotiations take place to facilitate this agency's relocation to another
site if at all possible. Doing so will permit the resulting square footage to be renovated for use as living
quarters for on-duty staffing. We have anticipated approximately 3,000 square feet of renovation as a
capital project that would be part of this long-term strategy. This project should have a 1 to 3 year
target completion time period.
6
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
Station #7 should be considered when statistical evaluation reveals a sufficient growth in service
demand in its anticipated service area to demonstrate that the station would realize a sufficient impact
on department performance. This evaluation can be performed through the use of geographic
information software (GIS).
We must point out that the deployment strategy described in this section does not provide 100%
coverage at the five-minute response time capability. There will remain pockets of the City that will
have longer response times. These are primarily located in the farthest southern and southeastern
sections of the city. While we do not expect service demand in these areas to peak sufficiently to
require additional facilities during this master plan period, city officials, including the Planning
Department, will need to work closely to identify changes in growth and development trends that
would require a reconsideration of this conclusion.
The same can be said of the developing areas north of the airport that have been annexed by the
City. These areas are clearly outside of the capability of the current or proposed deployment plan to
serve within the performance targets. The airport fire station is not suitably located, nor is it large
enough to house and operate as a structural response station. Thus, the City should consider whether
to encourage future development that will necessitate a dedicated fire station for that area and how
sufficient revenue might be generated to fund such an investment.
In summary, the long-term facility strategy calls for:
. The relocation of Station #6, constructed for use by on-duty staffing, within a two to
four year time frame.
. The renovation of 3,000 square feet at station #5 to accommodate on-duty staffing,
accommodated by relocation of existing tenant, within a one to three year time frame.
. The addition of a new Station #7 in the southwestern section of the City, within a
variable eight to fourteen year time frame.
Apparatus
Limited changes will be necessary in the deployment of apparatus under this master plan. The facility
deployment calls for a station relocation, which will not require additional equipment. The proposed
new station will, on the other hand, require at least an additional engine.
7
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
We also anticipate a decreasing need for the tankers as pressurized water systems are added.
However, these units will likely continue to serve a useful purpose for both St. Cloud and its mutual
aid partners for some time to come. We do, however, recommend that their deployment locations be
reconsidered on a regular basis to place them at stations with greatest advantage to the majority of
calls in non-hydranted areas.
Indications from the ISO rating are that the City of Saint Cloud will need more than the one ladder
company it had during its last rating in order to achieve greatest credit in the Community Fire
Protection Rating schedule for in-service ladder companies. The City is currently maintaining one
dedicated ladder company with on-duty staffing. An additional 65 foot telesquirt is operating as an
engine company, but would receive credit for its ladder capability.
In the future, the City may wish to consider replacing one additional engine with a small combination
engine-ladder unit. These vehicles, often referred to as "Quints", are typically most refined as engine
companies, but possess the necessary aerial ladder capability to receive credit under the ISO rating
and can, when necessary, perform dual function. The three units with aerial capability (one ladder
company and two "quints") should be distributed to the three response districts with the greatest
number of occupancies qualifying for ladder service (under ISO), most likely stations #1, #2, and #3.
This effort, while likely having only modest impact on actual operational outcomes, could improve the
City's ISO credit for ladder company service and assist in moving it towards an improved overall ISO
rating.
This long-term apparatus strategy is intended to identify new apparatus needs or significant changes
to current apparatus deployment. It should be remembered that the continuing planned replacement
of existing apparatus based on a reasonable life expectancy schedule is recommended elsewhere in
this report as an on-going strategy.
In summary, the long-term apparatus strategy calls for:
. The addition of one engine to the apparatus fleet when Station #7 is constructed.
. The future replacement of one existing engine with an additional "quint" for a total of
three aerial devices, if ISO credit improvement for ladder company service is desired.
. Continuing replacement of the current apparatus fleet according to an established
schedule based on reasonable life expectancy.
8
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
Staffing
The mid-term strategy for staffing calls for an increase in on-duty shift strength to 19 personnel. The
objectives of the mid-term strategy is to provide the ability for the agency to maintain minimum
apparatus staffing strength of three on all companies and to maintain an ability to generate fifteen
responders for moderate risk incidents using on-duty personnel, as recommended in the full report.
In order to achieve a reasonable 12% ratio of administrative and support personnel recommended in
the full report, it will also be necessary to maintain eight full-time equivalents in this category.
The following table describes the mid-term staffing strategy recommended as part of this master plan.
This mid-term strategy should be pursued in a one to three year time frame.
Figure 3: Mid-Term Staffing Strategy
Engine 1 Engine 4 4
Tower 1 ladder truck 4 4
Station 1 Command 55 Command 1 1
Dispatcher Staff 1 1
Engine 18 Reserve engine 0 0
Station 2 Engine 21 Engine 4 3
Brush Rig 4 Wildland unit Cross-staffed Cross-staffed
Engine 19 Engine 4 3
Station 3 Engine 16 ReselVe engine 0 0
Brush Rig 9 Wildland unit Cross-staffed Cross-staffed
Station 4 (ARFF) ARFFl ARFF engine 0
ARFF 2 ARFF engine 1
We have also developed a long-term staffing strategy to be initiated with the addition of stations five,
six, and seven to fully-staffed status. The long-term strategy for staffing emergency incidents calls for
an increase in on-duty shift strength to 30 personnel during the time period encompassed by this
master plan. Minimum shift strength would be permitted to fall lower than 30, but only to the extent
that the supplemental use of paid-on-call staffing can ensure adequate incident staffing performance
on a consistent basis.
In order to achieve a reasonable 12% ratio of administrative and support personnel, it will also be
necessary to maintain twelve full-time equivalents in this category.
9
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
The long-term strategy should be pursued in direct coordination with the addition of staffed fire
stations. In other words, as each identified station comes on-line with capability for housing on-duty
personnel, the additional staff should be added. The following table describes the long-term staffing
strategy recommended as part of this master plan.
Figure 4: Long-Term On-Duty Staffing Strategy
Engine 1 Engine 4
Station 1 Tower 1 Laddertruck 4
Command 55 Command 1
Engine 18 Reserve engine 0
Station 2 Engine 21 Engine 4
Brush Rig 4 Wildland unit Cross-staffed
Engine 19 Engine 4
Station 3 Engine 16 Reserve engine 0
Brush Rig 9 Wildland unit Cross-staffed
Station 4 (ARFF) ARFF1 ARFF engine 0
ARFF 2 ARFF engine 1
Station 5 Engine 11 Engine 4
Engine 10 Engine 4
Station 6 Tanker 12 Water tanker Cross-staffed
Brush Ri 5 Wildland unit 0
Station 7 New Engine Engine 4
Tanker 14 Water tanker Cross-staffed
Using a conservative leave ratio of 20%, we anticipate that this strategy can be accomplished with
ninety operations personnel. Following this strategy in this manner would result in the following
statistical benchmarks when the projected population of St. Cloud for 2025 is used.
10
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
Figure 5: Long-term Staffing Strategy Benchmark Comparisons
Firefighters Per 1,000 Population
iii On-Duly Strength
. Total Uniformed
Personnel
As can be seen from the chart, the SCFD long-term staffing strategy would continue to place SCFD
lower than the national averages published by the International City Manager Association. However,
we again point out that sorne of the departments in that study perform transport EMS services,
requiring higher levels of on-duty staffing.
The use of paid-an-call personnel to offset some of the increase in the number of career staff needed
in the future, while an admirable concept from the financial viewpoint, is not likely to succeed. The
facility deployment strategy was based on a one-minute maximum turnout time for on-duty staff. An
additional three to four minutes of turnout time for on-call staff would require the City to adopt a
response time performance objective of eight to nine minutes, significantly reducing the chances of
successful rescue and early fire control.
To be effective, such a concept would be wholly dependent on the ability of the paid-on-call staff to
provide consistent and immediate response to emergencies. This will require that the department
maintain statistics to determine the average percentage of all calls to which its paid-on-call members
arrive in time to be part of the initial arriving companies. This number then becomes the foundation for
determining the number of paid-on-call members necessary to achieve an equivalent to an on-duty
staffed position.
11
..,
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
For example, let's assume that the average percentage of all department incidents to which a paid-on-
call member responds (as an initial arriving company member) is 18%. Using this figure would result
in a calculation of 6 paid-on-call responders for each FTE of on-duty staff.
Using this formula would, for example, permit the City to consider that it would need to recruit and
maintain 18 new paid-on-call members in order to reduce the number of new career positions in the
future by three. In addition. the department would need to make certain these new paid-on-call
members maintained an initial response average of at least 18% of all calls.
Given that national statistics have seen the numbers of volunteer firefighters across the country drop
by 10% since the 1980's, the prospect of recruiting and maintaining a sufficient number of on-call
firefighters to have significant impact on reducing the long-term career staffing needs of the
department are dismal. The problem is cultural, as well as national in scope. and departments from
Maine to California are suffering- the amount of free time people have is decreasing while the amount
of time required for a firefighter's training and certification is increasing. This is not to suggest that
there is no value in those on-call personnel who are successfully recruited and retained. Many small
to mid-sized cities continue to use on-call personnel as an integral part of their safety force, providing
supplemental manpower to on-duty staff during emergency incidents and filling occasional vacancies
caused by leave. We recommend that Saint Cloud take this approach to the use of paid-on-call
responders.
It is also conceivable that part-time staffing could be considered. This would involve the scheduling of
part-time employees as a part of this on-duty staff. However, the on-duty staffing hours would still
need to be covered one for one. Each on-duty manhour would need to be covered by either full-time
career staff or a part-time paid firefighter, resulting in employee costs either way. The effective hourly
wage for a career firefighter' in Saint Cloud is $14.64 while the hourly wage for its paid-on-call
responders is $14.56. Any savings might be considered modest when considering the additional
issues involved in recruitment, scheduling, consistency and training.
With the additional operations staffing, there will be a need for increases in administrative and support
personnel. We anticipate the department maintaining a ratio of between 10 and 15 percent
administrative to operations staffing. Thus, we anticipate twelve administrative and support staff
positions will be needed as part of this long-term staffing strategy.
1 Firefighters as Grade C
12
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
In summary, the long-term staffing strategy calls for:
. An increase over the planning period to a total of ninety operations employees or FTE's
. An increase over the planning period to a total of twelve administrative and support
employees or FTE's
Organizational Structure
The St. Cloud Fire Department should develop into a model combination-staffed fire department, fully
integrating career personnel with paid-on-call members in a single, unified organizational structure.
This strategy, while representing a significant change for St. Cloud, is not unusual in the fire service.
Some of the most successful combination organizations across the country have fully integrated their
career and part-time duty staff, as well as their on-call personnel, into a seamless operation. In many
of these departments, one can spend a significant period of time in one of their fire stations without
being able to identify which firefighters are career, which are part-time, and which are volunteer or
paid-on-call.
The strategy would call for a major overhaul in how services are delivered. Stations would no longer
be identified as career or volunteer stations. Instead, each station would operate with blended staff,
using a combination of career and paid-on-call personnel. All jurisdictional issues of career vs. paid-
on-call response would, as recommended earlier this report, be eliminated in favor of the closest
appropriate unit being dispatched to any emergency call. Career personnel would provide the
consistent response force for most emergencies and on-call personnel would provide trained
supplemental manpower for major incidents or simultaneous calls.
The response of on-duty career personnel would not be restricted by either geography or time of day.
Likewise, on-call responders would be capable of responding to incidents from stations in any part of
the City of Saint Cloud to provide supplemental manpower to on-duty response strength. In addition,
we recommend that on-call responders also be given some opportunity to be scheduled as part-time
on-duty firefighters at a specific assigned station for specific assigned shifts. This provides them with
a consistent opportunity to attend training alongside the career staff and experience initial response
call volume to gain experience. Through this method, opportunity is also created to enhance
camaraderie and build some level of unity among personnel.
13
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
This strategy has the potential of achieving the greatest effectiveness for an on-call force, if such a
force is to be retained by the City of Saint Cloud. It provides the ability for on-call responders to
supplement on-duty staff throughout the entire city and provides a significant benefit in the recruitment
of on-call personnel. No longer would the geographical criteria for on-call personnel be limited to
proximity of two specific stations, but rather recruitment could occur city-wide. On-call responders
would be assigned to the station in closest proximity to their residence and/or place of employment.
The benefit for career personnel is the potential for increasing on-duty strength through the
assignment of on-call responders to part-time duty shifts. Even if this were to occur only a portion of
the time, the percentage of time a unit responds with four firefighters on board rather than three would
increase significantly.
The fallowing figure demonstrates at least an example of the organizational structure, as it might exist,
under this strategy2.
2 All individual administrative and support positions are not shown. Twelve such positions are called for in the long-term
staffing strategy.
14
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
Figure 6: Long-Term Strategy Organizational Structure
Saint Cloud
Fire Chief
Suppression
Division
Administration
Division
Training
Division
Prevention
Division
Volunteer (POC)
Assistant Chief
1-CareerFiirefighter
1-CareerUeutenant
3-CareerFlirefighters
PQC Firefighters
1-CareerUeutenant
3-CareerFiirefighters
POCFirefighters
1-CareerUeutenant
3-CareerFHrefighters
PQCFfrefighters
Of course, this organizational strategy is not without its downside. It needs to be acknowledged that,
while there are many examples of success, there are also many departments using unified
combination staffing methodology that are among the most troubled organizations in the fire service.
Combination departments are easily the most challenging organizations to manage. This is because
of the inherent differences between career firefighting staff and on-call firefighting staff.
Career firefighters immediately point to the disparity in training and experience as a major factor. On-
eall responders might readily point out the financial benefit they can present over career personnel.
Many additional personality factors typically come into playas well. The result is often a culture of
distrust, resentment, and even destructive behaviors.
15
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
Where such staffing systems have been most successful, managers typically point to the
development of a "culture of acceptance". In short, many ineffective combination departments are
filled with on-call responders who want to view the organization as a "volunteer fire department" and
see it operate in that fashion. Conversely, many of the career personnel in these same agencies want
to view the organization as a "career fire department" and seek to downplay the existence or value of
all but full-time staff. The successful combination departments seem to have developed an accepted
identity as just what they are- a combination staffed agency. In these departments, both career and
on-call personnel clearly understand- and have accepted- what they individually bring to the agency,
and what the other side brings to the table as well.
We believe such a culture of acceptance will be extremely difficult, but not impossible, to achieve in
the Saint Cloud Fire Department. As was pointed out earlier in the report, the department has had ten
years of experience with a poorly planned merger that has built walls between the career and on-call
responders that are clearly seen during interviews with personnel at all levels of the organization.
The best opportunity for success in this regard would be through an internal strategic planning
process. If the organizational structure of a fully unified and integrated combination staffing system is
accepted by the City as its long-term strategy, the internal strategic planning process can bring the
personnel within the department into the process of determining how to achieve its success, including
transitional methods to achieve the necessary level of acceptance.
Fiscal Projection
This long-term strategy calls for the addition of a new fire station, the relocation of an existing station,
the renovation of an existing station, the addition of one engine to the apparatus fleet, and an increase
in on-duty staffing. In an effort to demonstrate the financial impact of the strategy, we project both the
anticipated capital costs and the impact to annual operating expenditures if this long-term strategy
were fully and completely implemented.
We emphasize one very important point. This financial analysis provides a "snapshot" of the fiscal
effects of the deployment, resource, and staffing changes as if the action occurs during the current
budgetary year. Our analysis does not attempt to predict the actual tax rate after implementation.
16
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
The fiscal projections are made under the following declared assumptions:
. Cost per square foot for new construction at $110
. Cost per square foot for renovation at $65
. New fire stations approximated at 10,000 square feet.
. Land acquisition costs estimated at $150,000 per property
. New engine costs estimated at $320,000
. Benefit costs for staff at .30 of base salary
The following table reflects the estimated financial impact if al1 recommended changes in facilities,
apparatus, and staffing were currently in effect.
Figure 7: Long-Term Strategy Cost Projections'
1,250,000
195,000
1,250,000
320,000
3,015,000
Station #5 Staffin
Station #6 Staffin
Station #7 Staffin
Administrative and Su ort Staffin
Annual Station 0 eratin Costs
TOTAL ADDED ANNUAL OPERATING COSTS
$ 688,986
$ 688,986
$ 688,986
$ 212,550
$ 60,000
$ 2,339,508
3 Capital cost projections shown do not include costs associated with recommendations found in the City of Saint Cloud
Facilities Study, conducted by SJA in 2004.
17
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
Short and Mid-Term Strategies
The full report contains a large collection of short and mid-term improvement strategies for the St.
Cloud Fire Department. Among these were many recommendations that were operational in nature,
directed to the decision makers within the agency itself. However, several recommendations touch on
issues of policy that would be of particular interest to elected policymakers and others involve the
potential for observable impact to operating budgets. For this reason, we have elected to include a
collection of these short and mid-term strategies that address issues likely to be of particular interest
to elected and appointed officials of the city of St. Cloud. The recommendations are arranged by
category for easier reference.
For a full review of all recommendations, see Section IV of the full report.
Administrative and Management Strategies
After completing the ten-objective evaluation of the Saint Cloud Fire Department, the following short
and mid-term strategies are offered as recommendations for improving the administration and
management functions of the agency. Individual narrative text describing the issues associated with
these recommendations may be found in the appropriate sections of this report.
. The organizational structure between the career and paid-on-call elements of the department, as
designed by the 1995 merger agreement, is counterproductive and promotes a culture of
divisiveness. The organizational structure, to be effective, must be overhauled to reflect a truly
unified organization and must be supported by efforts to develop an accepted culture of trust,
loyalty, and camaraderie.
· The fire department should complete a customer-centered strategic planning process within the
organization involving stakeholders from various levels of the department.
. The department should develop a truly progressive website with improved access to public
information and services.
. The department should consider establishing a citizen's advisory group to meet at least twice
annually, providing the customer perspective on service delivery, planning and budgeting.
. The department should update it records management software to enhance the ability to conduct
in-depth performance analysis. In addition, the agency should seek to enhance its ability to work
with and utilize Geographic Information Software in deployment, performance, workload, and
prevention analysis.
18
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
. Analyze the Deputy Chief of Training and Administration to determine whether the position should
be reallocated to Assistant Chief or assigned in the chain of command between the Fire Chief and
the Assistant Chiefs.
. The job description for the position of Captain at Station #1 describes supervisory activities that
are not reflected on the organizational chart. The position does not appear to perform at the
advanced supervisory capacity indicated in the job description and should be considered for
downgrading to Lieutenant.
Capital Asset Strategies
After completing the ten-objective evaluation of the Saint Cloud Fire Department, the following short
and mid-term strategies are offered as recommendations on issues related to the capital assets of the
agency. Individual narrative text describing the issues associated with these recommendations may
be found in the appropriate sections of this report.
. Follow the recommendation of the Community Facilities Assessment Study for improvements to
existing facilities.
. The City should consider developing and funding an apparatus replacement program that
anticipates replacement schedules (as in the example replacement schedule provided) and builds
necessary funding in order to spread cost over multiple years.
. Develop and fund a small equipment and turnout gear replacement program that anticipates
replacement schedules and builds necessary funding in order to spread cost over multiple years.
Emergency Service Delivery Strategies
After completing the ten-objective evaluation of the Saint Cloud Fire Department, the following short
and mid-term strategies are offered as recommendations on issues related to the delivery of
emergency services by agency. Individual narrative text describing the issues associated with these
recommendations may be found in the appropriate sections of this report.
. Negotiate an acceptable agreement for dispatching services from the Stearns County Sheriffs
Department Communications Center. Decommission the SCFD Dispatch Center and reassign
firefighters to response duty.
. Improve the department's capability to collect and evaluate incident data to ensure its ability to
evaluate performance and effectiveness in the future.
19
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
. Adopt performance objectives for emergency services that clearly define response performance
expectations in measurable terms.
. Discontinue the separation of the city into volunteer and career response areas. Develop a
dispatch plan that sends the closest appropriate response unit regardless of its career versus
paid-on-call status.
. Discontinue sending three response units to fire alarm activations. Send only a single engine
unless it is verified that an actual emergency is in progress.
. Consider adopting local law that creates a penalty for excessive numbers of false fire alarms at a
given location.
. The Saint Cloud Fire Department's distribution of resources and historical response time
performance indicates the agency could provide beneficial services to the City's emergency
medical system. An integration of fire and police first response at the basic life support level, along
with advanced life support paramedic transport services, will meet or exceed the NFPA 1710
performance benchmarks for EMS services. This project should be moved forward.
Training Program Strategies
After completing the ten-objective evaluation of the Saint Cloud Fire Department, the following short
and mid-term strategies are offered as recommendations on issues related to the training programs of
the agency. Individual narrative text describing the issues associated with these recommendations
may be found in the appropriate sections of this report.
. Achieve State certified instructors for the Department; especially the Deputy Chief of Training and
Administration.
. Address the training disparity between the Career and Volunteer Divisions. A centralized,
consistent approach to accomplishing training for both Divisions needs to be implemented.
. Expand attendance opportunities at the NF A throughout the officer ranks and those developing
their officer skills.
Fire Prevention Strategies
After completing the ten-objective evaluation of the Saint Cloud Fire Department, the following short
and mid-term strategies are offered as recommendations on issues related to the fire prevention
programs of the agency. Individual narrative text describing the issues associated with these
recommendations may be found in the appropriate sections of this report.
20
Saint Cloud Fire Department, MN
Fire Protection Master Plan- Executive Summary Document
. Consider implementing a formal, citywide development authorization review process.
. Establish the frequency these properties should be inspected by level of risk.
. Identify the resources needed to conduct inspections, re-inspections, plan review, tests, fire
investigations, life and fire safety education and other related responsibilities.
. Develop a comprehensive records management system so that the results of inspections can be
recorded, inspections tracked and next inspection dates identified to the inspector.
. Explore charging fees for required fire inspections.
. Modify the SCFD's life and fire safety education culture from an "as can" attitude to a priority
mission for the Department.
21
SYSTEM PlANNING CORPORA nON ~
"' ,-~-~~----"--,- TriD.af'.l Dtv~ioo'"
1_ wa-. ~n...-d, M~... 'Vir$.... :l2Nt' . ("WI lSl-6:lGl1 . G7il2) 1>'>1 ~~ "'" . "1>."''''I'~..."lIi'1"D.io~
Comprehensive Management Study
of the
Saint Paul Department of Fire and
Safety Services
Final Report
Submitted to:
Christopher B. Coleman, Mayor
City of Saint Paul, MN
390 City Hall
15 West Kellogg Boulevard
Saint Paul, MN 55102
Submitted by:
Philip Schaenrnan, President
T riData, a Division of System Planning Corporation
1000 Wilson Blvd_, 30th Floor
Arlington, Virginia 22209
(703) 351-8300
March 2007
Table of Contents
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.............................................._........................._............................................._...1
CITY STAFF ---.---........nn......n.nn.n...___..___..nn...___...nn....__...n.n......___0000........0000...
TRIDA T A STAFF on.......______.....n nu "..hnn..._nn__..________.___."._ __ _n_ ..._.....nnn n_......__..
"ho.O.._____...1
.....__n___u_H
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ....................................._....................................................................................3
KEY QUESTIONS AND FINDINGS ......00000000..... ______00.00.00....00000000..__...___00.00..
ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT ___m._. .....m........ _...__....n____hmn__.___
RISK AND DEMAND_n__..__._..._________......_______ _._nn_._______..____ _.__un.._.__________
FIRE, RESCUE, AND EMS OPERATIONS .___0000 000000000000...000000__ .."__.___'___00
SUPPORT SERVICES nnuuunm___..__. ...n._nnn_. U_hmhnnnu_.._m_.
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT _ .___...n____._m. n_....__....______
IMPLEMENTATION nn.. __.__..m....... _n_nnnnm._..
.._____00______00000000__ ....3
.00...0000000000...5
..___0000___________00__...00___00..__.8
.00.___00.00..008
_____.________.__10
...0011
00000012
I. INTRODUCTION ...-......................._......................................._...........__.................................................1
SCOPE OF WORK ________00..__.___.___00.....
METHODOLOGY.. h_..om_.n___
OVERVIEW OF THE DEPARTMENT __.... ..._____0......_.
BACKGROUND OF CiTY nmun ....m .._h.......
ORGANIZATION OFTHE REpORT______.. ........__....
,,1
0000"2
_______.__.2
n__n___.3
nn ___''''005
II. MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION ......................................................................................._..7
OVERVIEW .........~...._.......uh.n.....u ..._..._............_..._....u.... ~..................n ........nn..... _..........7
MISSION STATEMENT AND KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS... ..........._... .......8
ORGANfZATlONALSTRUC1lJRE ... ................. .....m........ ..10
OPERATIONS___n__...n......__ 00.....___.14
REORGANIZED ORGANIZATiONAL STRUCTURE ...._.......... .......17
PG}'roll Services ... . .........--. __............___. .....................--.......__.._............__.....22
BUDGET AND FINANCL.. n'....nn.__ .___...___nnn ..000023
EMS REVENUE AND FEES.. .nnn.n.......... "'n___n___.... .n.......nn.______.n__ 0030
CAPITAL PROJECTS AND FUNDING .m.._ ._.............m....... ................. .....31
Internal Process..._... ...----....... ..____.._..........__..._... .._...........__._.. ....__....32
COMMUNICATlON...un.un..___u ..un.nn._____ .uuuunnnnu__ .nn'.___nn__.. nnnnn..33
LABOR/MANAGEMENT RElA TrONS .......- .................................... 'h......_u.. n__........35
IAFF Local 3939 (Supervisors) .n.n.'......___nnn ......35
lAFF Local 21 (Firefighlers). nnnnn..n__'n,'n... n.....______n.____ .unn.n___nnn......n.nnn..u.36
PROGRESSIVE DISCIPUNE AND GRIEVANCES ............._ __.m.m....... mm,,,u'.'h_ m......m38
Overtime _ ......-........ ...... .__ __........._............ _......40
HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT '''.mm........ ......_nmm....u.... _._.42
Demographics...... .......__.............._........ ........_........... u___......... __.......42
Hiring. .................. ....-...........-.--..........._____................n... ....................... ....._.._....44
Recruiting ......_..m........__ __........... __.m......u ....__45
ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT _ ...._n._uu.............. ..m47
TheSituQfion.. ......._.m..m.. . ............m... ...u__._...... ___.18
Fixing the Problem.. .........-........_._....._.... ... .__............ ..._.50
SUMMARY OF MANAGEMENT STAFf CHANGES._....u.._ .........uu._...._._..n.... .._..................._..56
III. RISK AND DEMAND ......_.._......_...__............................_....._....._................................................_.57
RISKS ................ ..........0000........... ................. ...........00..................... ........57
Dai(v Hazards .....u_n...........__ ..n.................. .._._........nu '"'_0''''''''''' .....__57
a/her Hazards ....mmun"mo ......58
DEMAND ANAL YSIS _._nn__.+u....___nn__u.~h_n_n_n__.__n.u___nn._.____._...hnO.nn.. ._____n________... _,00__72
WORKLOAD FORECASrS ... ............................................... .....00............................ ..................00..................83
BUDGET AND FIRE LoSS ANAL YSIS...............n....... ................ ................... 00.......... ................................. .0088
IV. DETERMINING RESOURCE NEEDS............................._..............._........._......_........._............91
SOURCES TO AID IN DEVELOPING CRITERIA...............n..........................................._._.........n... ..............92
RESPONSE TIMES........................_............_.............. ............... n.....m.... 00................................ . ...... ..... .00.96
STATIONS ..............................m...._................ .............00 ................_..........n.....m.. ."'''........ 00..... _...........1 05
RESOURCES AND DEMAND .......................................n.................mm........ ........00.......108
Number and LOCOlion of Apparatus....._____ ...........__........ .........108
OTHER STANDARDS AND CONSENSUS GUIDELINES ............... ........00.......... .............. 00.112
RESPONSE COMPLEMENTS..... ........................................00....... 00.............. .00..." 00.... ..00................... ..........114
v. STATION LOCA nON AND APPARATUS DEPLOYMENT .....--..........._......................_.........117
00.. .......117
......00..00.......117
....n.......m... liS
.n...m....... ...123
00..144
METHODOLOGY ....omm __ ......._n.. n.......
CURRENT RESPONSE TIMESnu___...nnn__.+__
Call Processing and Dispatch ...BU_ .u_ _..._.........
ANALYSIS OF STATION AND ApPARATUS LOCA nONS moo
SUMrvtARY U'.U_hnnn un....__..____.______.... ._nhun___________
VI. FIRE, RESCUE, & EMS OPERA TIONS................................_......_....._........................................147
OVERVIEW. ..m.................n................n.... ........................ nn....m........._... .............147
PREVIOUS FIRE OEPARTMENTSllJDY nn.. .~m.nnu_..... ....148
ORGANIZArlON U'u...uuu uu...u...uu U"''''UUUUUnm 150
Work Schedules and Staffing ........ ... ....".m........ ......._........... ......._....... .......______...... /53
Sick Leave '''.. ....._...n... __.................... .........__h..........._..__n........._._nn __..155
Shift Schedules. U",m.U'" mnu....m....u.umm..m..uum..157
Staffing Factor U. . .uu...... UUU.mm 158
FIRE SUPPRESSION OPERATIONS. uuuuuuu...... u..u.mu.... ......uuuu 159
ConceplofOperalions'''h..mnm..m ....__........__ ..........__.159
COMMAND AUTHORlTYuuuum.....umu..u.u....u...uuu u...uuuu...u.....u ............... uu 161
HISTORIC DEMAND, CALL TYPES AND LOSSESu.......u.. u.......uUunuum.......................uu ...u....u........162
Fire-Related Fatalities and Injuries m'.mm.. __'h.m......... ....o.._m..... ......__.mm... ......m 165
Unil Responses_......... ...._.m.m..._ ......-..............._m............_._._.165
SPEED AND WEIGHT OF RESPONSE. Uuu...nnu ."."''''U.U.U u.168
Crew Complements and Risk__.. m..nm..... .'_.n...mu.. ....._........ ..........mnm 169
Company Move-Ups. mnm....... ....... .....__.....u.m....u ..173
AUTOMATIC AND MUTUAL AID ..........uu.............. ..uuuuunum.l73
RESCUE AND SPEClALOPERATIONS "'.U.'.U""...........mu..u... U."....uun.u. ..uuu......u.174
EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES UU.U'''uUuu...uu mnuU'...m...u.u...........uu. m....uu.uu...175
EMS Organizalion u...m............... ._ __........... .....176
EMS Delivery. .....u...uuuu.. .U.Uu.......u uuuuu 177
Alternalive De/ivery Models h............. ........_............. ......_..179
Existing Model:..___~....._u._____m.__....u... ......m...._.__...m
Alternative Full-Stajjing Model... ....mn..._.__h...
Variation to Full Staffingm___. .mhunu...
EMS Shift Commander~ hhhhhum....h.
EMS Medical Direction. ...__.mu........n..__......u..
EMS Quality Management...... .___._..4_____.m.......
EMS Training... mm......u__...__...
Paramedic Recruitment ..nu.n.....____......
..U....U~~U...umm...~ /80
UUUUU'hhhummumm /8/
uumu...u, ~~/82
~.183
~......u-..-u.......uu~u~hmm./86
..hm...u.uU.....~..UU..h...../89
~m...u~.~..U~.mumuhU.uu /90
...uuu...uumu.....m.u..~hu 192
..~Uhuuuu.~.~u...~.~.......~.~.~ 192
.u...um~..~u~~~h~u~.~u....uuuu....h.193
..um.~..~uuuu..uU..h...u /93
.UUUh~h'hm /95
.u.~umm~~~.m...~.... .....uu.....u.. /96
.......~..~...u .....~muuu......muuuu~.h.m~m /96
ALTERNATE DEPLOYMENT OPTIONS 00 u._..n.n.....__........m....u.....
FUTURE DEPLOYMENT OPTIONS ...n.__...........m.....__...... __m...nn....__
Deployment Option I-Current System Plus 2 Medic Units
Deployment Op/ion 2 -Full stafJingof5 selected medic units
Deployment Option 3- Full slaffing of all medic units __u._
Deployment Option 4- Long Tenn Mosler Plan __..n
VII. FIRE PREVENTION ....._h................._.............................._......................................................_....20 I
PREVENTION PHILOSOPHY.........m....m__...nn .__n.....m.nm ...-......__..._..hnm__._........n___..n...202
Prevention .}yfission Statemenl m'_'_m...n...._ .____.n....... .....mnm. .....hnm.______.. ...202
Involving Line Units in Inspections m__.__._.......___ .n__._..mmu__....h...mu .....203
ORGANIZATION AND STAFFING -- .................___.m...n.__................204
Current Organi:>:otion .__._......... n...........__n___ ...u204
Staffing.. ...U.....um.u......um~........~~...mu ......~h~...m...u . .~~muuu ~206
Codes and Authority .........._n_..........__..._un ....h........__..n_.n._....__.._____.n _h__.__uun_.n..n. .n__l08
Sprinkleling. ....__...n___....__u ._.__.......__.._. ..nnu__n__n.. ...._..n..______ _______u....n___.__.. .n..208
PLANS REVIEW & FIRE ENGJNEERING m.mn.n..___.hh. .__m...........n__...._.....h209
Plans Revieu' Workload ..._m......__ __ ... .........m.___ m............ .m...__....._ ..__.....mmmu .2/ /
INSPECTIONS U~~..m.uu~ ~~muu.u~ "UU~UUUU'~'unnn .u.uu Unm~m~.. .UUU"U"'nu .212
New & Renovated Fire 5.,vstem lnspeclions .......... ..._.m..... "'''''''mn____ .2/2
Original Certificate o/OccLlpancy Inspeclions on New or Renovated Buildings m.2 / 3
E'(isting Buildings Commercia/lnspections..._ ...._......... n..2/3
Er:isling Residential Building Inspections.._..m ....._....._m .......m____... ___mn..........214
One and Twolami~ll Rental Inspections ..0. ...... ......____ ....21 j
Reftrral (Comp/aint) Inspections _....................m___m __h215
Problem Properties ....._..._.mn__ ._.mm__nm .......2/6
Inspeclion Workload m............n ......monn.....on.. .. n.m...__ .......0......2/7
Fees & Permits ...... ..._....... ....umm........._. _,','m______. m...220
Training '.___....m_____.. ......._....m.u ._.......221
PUBLIC EDUCA TION m.~m~uu%~ unnum..m~hnnnnuun U~mum~.~~n nmnmnunmnunu...222
Schoof Programs ..n........... ....._.m........u .......__,-..........m..m __.....m.___.h....n223
Olher Programs '.hmmn.... m......... .n........nmmm__ .._._m.m.... ........224
Fire inspector Parlicipation._ "_mmm__ ........._____ '__m............ m225
Line Company ParJicipation ..._....._..._ ....m.n.nom___m.......... ..__..225
Communily~Based Prevention. __.........m...._ n......u__u.. nm225
FIRE INVESTIGATION ..._. ...._u__..n.mm. ........__................n__ ___n.nun..mm. n..nnnn...._nn............. n__ ..226
GENERAL POLICY AND PROCEDURES uu.n~....nnunm.~nh..mmmuuu ~...mmuu. m.nmmu.hh~mun~.nunuu227
CASE LOAD ~nu..nu... .uuuuu~n~~.nm~nn~.~U...nnumnuu..mnuunun u~.~.mnnm~mmmu.~.h..nnnunmmn.uu229
Sumfnary ....... .....n. ..n.._..n.......__
u...U.........n...n... nn.........u.... .u...un.....231
...nuu.........n uuu.231
n...nnnnnn.n.... ...u...nnn u.'m.....un .nnum233
n.nnn.u.....n.. ...nmnun . n.n. ...233
Fire Investigator Scheduling....un
Training mm.........nh..m mm..__....
OTHER FINOfNGS..m__u..............._........
ApPARA 111S MAINTENANCE AND CAPITAL PLANNlNG _...__mm........
....245
VIII. SUPPORT SERVICES................_................................................._......_.............._.......................235
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE ....U..nn..n..n..nn........nn......................nu .........n.n. .......n.........235
TRAlNING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT .n_.mm_................._....... .....00..____........ ........235
Recruit Training.m....m..mm........... ....__mmn..n..m..................m ..237
Summary ......n.................. '00."__".'" .......................u._.u................... ...... ........ ._.242
HEALTH, fiTNESS, AND WELlNESS PROGRAMS __n.mnnnn__..__mnnm......._.nmnm. mmmn... .244
Health! Wellness Program and Budge!...__.................................... .____.00.._........ ............__...._n._245
Personal Filness .__._.............. .......__..00.......__............................. ..__n.__._ ......................n.__245
Overview '..n. ....__..__........ ...__..._..
CURRENT PERSONNEL.__.........m....
nn n ...u..n...u...n.n..246
AUTHORIZED....
POSlTiONS..._...m
CLASSIFICATION
RESPONSIBILITIES ..n......._...
...nun248
u248
...u .......uu....n .n..248
.....uu248
unnu.......unuu Ununu .n.248
Capital Replacement....... nn..._._...... ......m...... n'_ _._._...............
INFORMATION MANAGEMENT U"._m.h...........__ ......m.m...
FIRE STATION MAINTENANCE AND FUNCTIONALITY .......m.....................
.. .....n255
n.nuuu...m... un.259
. uumnun...mn muu.262
IX. EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ............................................_._.._._.......................n..................274
INTRODUCTION. .....unn...u...u.n nunu..n......u.. mn...n..... u...unm.. n274
Curren! Situation...m ........ . n...m.......................... nn..........275
EMERGENCVOPERATION PLAN. ..____m "_."m" __..mhm__ ......280
Situation and Assumptions __'...um..__ ....__ n.._._......... n_._._nn _ __....281
INTERGOVERNMENTAL AGREEMENTS ..__ ....m.....__................n 00'__""""". ___..............n..m.. .283
EMERGENCYOPERATIONSCENTER.n....un...uu..m....n...nnnn..........u n. n. ..nnn .....284
CONTINUITY OF GOVERNMENT __ .....mnnn..................._..............._____........ ._..................285
CHAPTER X. TABLE OF RECOMMENDATlONS....................__........._.._........_.._........_._.........286
APPENDIX A: COMPUTATION OF A V AILABLE TlME...._.._..................._..._................_....._....302
APPENDIX B: PLAN REVIEWER WORKLOADSI ARLINGTON, TX......................._..................303
APPENDIX C: BUILDING PERMITS BY PROPERTY TYPE......_.....m........_......................_........304
APPENDIX D: COMMERCIAL BUILDING PLAN REVIEW STAFFING......................-..............305
Comprehensive Management Study
of the Saint Paul Department of Fire and Safety Services Final Report
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We wish to thank the leadership and staff members of the many City of Saint Paul
departments and agencies that provided valuable insight for this study_ They not only provided
information and welcomed our visits to their areas, but they also interacted helpfully with us
throughout the study_
Fire Chief Doug Holton and many other officers of the Saint Paul Department of Fire and
Safety Services (SPDFSS), along with firefighters, and civilian staff were extremely cooperative,
gracious and forthcoming during the project. They provided data, facilitated tours of the city and
facilities, and they discussed openly the opportunities and challenges facing the organization.
We particularly want to acknowledge Angie Nalezny, who was the city's designated
contact for this project. She efficiently handled the administrative responsibilities of the project,
coordinated each of our many visits, handled the data requests, and scheduled meetings. Ms.
Nalezny also made sure the project remained on schedule and coordinated the review and
comments process of the draft report. Specifically, we wish to thank the following for their help
on this project:
CITY STAFF
Christopher B. Coleman
Kathy Lantry
Ann Mullholand
Angie Nalezny
Sue Wegwerth
Ron Kline
Lori Lee
Doug Holton
Linda Camp
Dave Pleasants
Jay Monogue
Steve Zaccard
Cindy Mentes
Sue Jacobson
Keith Morehead
Dr. R.J. Frascone
John Swanson
Matt Smith
Ron Ktine
Cindy Mullan
Terry Haltiner
Martin Ludden
Mark Mueller
Jason Schmidt
Mayor
City Councit President
Chief of Staff
Director of Human Resources
Assistant to the Director of Human Resources
City Budget Manager
City Officer of Financial Services
Fire Chief
City Contracts Manager
Assistant Fire Chief of Operations
Assistant Fire Chief
Fire Marshal
Office Manager
Deputy Chief. EMS
Deputy Chief Training
Medical Director
FinanciaJ Services Manager - Fire
Director, Office of Financial Services
Office of Financial Services
Infonnation Services Manager
Labor Management Committee
District Chief, 1" District
District Chief, 3'" District
Labor Relations Manager
T riData, a Division of
System Plarming Corporation
March 2007
Comprehensive Management Study
of the Saint Paul Department of Fire and Safety Services Final Report
Pat Flanagan
Robert Morrison
Patricia James
Jessica Rosenfeld
Judd Freed
Kim Ketterhagen
Tom Butler
Mall Bostrom
John Maczko
Krisli Rollwagen
Jamie Novak
Phmip Owens
Michael Urmann
Pat Fish
Paula J. Pelerson
Angie Leitner
Bob Siefert
Nancy Mondry
Union President. Local 21
Fire Supervisors Union Local 3939
City Planning
City Planning
Ramsey County EM Director of Emergency Management &
Homeland Security
Slate EM Regional Coordinator for the Metropolitan Region
Chief of Emergency Management and Communications
Assistant Police Chief
City Engineer Public Works
Deputy Chief of Emergency Preparedness, Minneapolis Fire Dept
Fire Investigator
Fire Inspector U. Supervisor Commercial
Fire Inspeclor II Supervisor, Residential
Fire Inspector II, Problem Properties
Public Education Officer
Fire Protection Engineer
Fire Inspector, Sprinklers
Office Assistant IV
While TriData received excellent input and cooperation from the city, the evaluation and
recommendations retlected in this report are those of our project team. The principal members of
the team and their areas of responsibility are shown below; however, this was a team effort and
views were sought from multiple team members on virtually every subject area.
TRIDATASTAFF
Philip Schaenman
Stephen Brezler
Harold Cohen
Paul Flippin
Hollis Stambaugh
Dan Bay
Martha Word-Haley
Robert Hedden
Markus Weisner
Jud Bushkar
Steven Lee
Tracy Lynch
Tracy Tlsbo
Joe Laun
Paula Offord
Shania Flagg
Corporate Oversight
Project Manager, Fire Operalions. Managemenl and Organizalion,
Master Planning
Depuly Project Manager, Management and Organization.
Emergency Medical Services. Training and Support Services
Fleet Management and Facilities
Emergency Management
Organizational Development
Fire Prevention, Infonnation Technology. Code Enforcement
Fire Prevention and Investigation
Risk Assessment and Demand
Population Growth and Demand Projections
Station Location and Response Tome Analysis
Emergency Management
GIS Mapping
lnler-jurisdictional Comparisons
Production Coordination and Support
Production Coordination and Support
TriData, a Division of
System Planning Corporation
II
March 2007
Comprehensive Management Study
of the Saint Paul Department of Fire and Safety Services Final Report
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The City of Saint Paul requested the assistance of an outside firm to provide a
comprehensive management study of the fire department. The study was to assess staffing and
the deployment of Saint Paul Department of Fire and Safety Service (SPDFSS) resources,
including an analysis of station locations and response times. Also evaluated were the efficiency
and effectiveness of management as well as the organizational structure. TriData, a division of
System Panning COIl'Oriuion located in Arlington, V A, was selected to conduct the study
through a competitive bid process with input from the two unions (Local 21 and Local 3939)
representing fire personnel. TriData has conducted technical research on fire and EMS related
issues for over 25 years_
Saint Paul's 280,000 residents are served by 16 stations_ The SPDFSS provides EMS and
fire suppression services, technical rescue, and hazmat response. Eleven of the fire stations are
dual-staffed fire / paramedic companies where the engine and EMS units are staffed using the
same personnel. In addition to 16 engines, there are 7 ladder companies, 3 rescue companies, and
3 district chiefs. A deputy chief commands each shift.
KEY QUESTIONS AND FINDINGS
The city posed six key questions that were the foundation for most of the study and
analysis. They are presented below with a short summary of the response. The report contains
full detail.
I _ Is the fire department management function structured appropriately for optimal
department peiformance? Are assignments and levels of responsibility appropriate?
The SPDFSS structure is not working as well as it could. There is an extra layer
of management that could be eliminated_ There are overlapping responsibilities in some
key areas while other important functions such as safety/ health and planning are
identified in the current organizational structure but not staffed.
EMS is 80 percent of the fire department's business; however, it is secondary in
terms of organizational importance and mission, which is common in many communities.
To improve EMS quality and add higher skill levels for paramedics, EMS should become
a division under operations, with three EMS shift officers instead of three deputy chiefs_
L How can fire personnel best be utilized given current and projected demand for
services and available resources?
The current approach is to provide fire suppression and EMS using the same staff.
Referred to as cross-staffing, the fire department assigns four personnel to its engines,
TriData, a division of
System Planning Corporation
3
March 2007
Comprehensive Management Study
of the Saint Paul Department of Fire and Safety Services Final Report
two of whom are paramedics. When an EMS call is received, the engine is placed out of
service and the medic unit responds to the call. Depending on the type of call, the engine
may also respond.
The present model has been used since EMS was introduced in the early 1970's_
It worked well in the past; however, EMS call volumes have now increased substantially
and the cross-staffing approach will not provide the necessary EMS resources to meet the
city's need. Changing the model and staffing the EMS units independently is
recommended in the near future. There are interim changes that can be made in the short
term to immediately improve EMS and fire delivery, such as adding two additional medic
units followed by full staffing of several of the busier EMS units.
3- What is the appropriate staffingfor each of the functional areas of the department
(type. number, shift scheduling)?
In general, the fire department has adequate staffing in most of its divisions. The
changes to improve EMS delivery require a slight increase in the number of on-duty staff,
but not immediately. Training needs one additional training officer and there is a need to
fill several of the vacant but authorized positions in fleet services.
The 56-hour work schedule for Saint Paul firefighters is somewhat typical of
other departments but the schedule rotation is not. Firefighters and paramedics work 24
hours on-duty followed by 24 hours off-duty; the schedule is punctuated by four and five
day off-duty periods between cycles. The schedule is tough, especially for paramedics_
Problems with sick leave are also occurring, which are likely attributable to the
schedule_ Sick leave use is also being affected by the minimum staffing requirements the
departmcnt is ilttempting to maintain- To improve the quality of work life and reduce sick
leave, we recommend that a new 24/48 or other alternative schedule be considered.
4_ How can the fire department better align its technology resources to help achieve
optimal performance in the key Department jUnctional areas?
The SPDFSS is improving in its use of technology but it falls short in some areas,
most notably having a "technically savvy" person to oversee IT. The department has
attempted to improve the use of information and data for management decision-making;
however, these efforts are fragmented.
On the positive side, the fire department is implementing mobile data terminals
(MDT's) and there have been attempts to automate administrative functions. In general
these attempts have been unsuccessful due to the limited training for management staff to
use technology such as computers_ Fire prevention has achieved much success using
TriData, a Division of
System Planning Corporation
4
March 2007
technology. The primary IT need is to acquire and implement an electronic time and
attendance system, which other city departments also need and can use.
Comprehensive Management Study
of the Saint Paul Department of Fire and Safety Services Final Report
5. Are there opportunities to improve the following areas: internal communications;
structure, type, and number of support and administrative staff; command structure?
Internal communications need to improve; they are a significant issue that affects
the labor management problems being experienced. The fire department has an adequate
number of civilian support staff; however, there are opportunities to reorganize them to
improve effectiveness. For example, the two data analysts currently report to separate
individuals. To improve planning, they should be under one supervisor who is
responsible for overall planning and information management. Similar opportunities exist
to streamline the uniformed command staff, such as removing one layer of management
and creating functional specialists such as a chief of special operations, and a health and
safety officer; these are important functions that allow the SPDFSS to accomplish its
mlSSIon.
6. How effectively are other resources being used, given current and future demands for
service? Resources include.-fire equipment and apparatus: light duty and alternative
response vehicles; station and facility locations; and, computer technology.
The apparatus fleet has improved in recent years but the replacement plan does not
replace apparatus quickly enough to keep the fleet up-to-date. The types of apparatus purchased
are appropriate for the city; however, there are opportunities to reduce the number of fire
suppression vehicles and replace these with more EMS vehicles to meet the growing EMS
demand_
Overall, station and facilities maintenance is excellent. To implement the proposed
master plan there is a need to relocate two existing stations and rebuild one station on its present
site. The city should also move ahead with its plan to build a new station that would merge
Stations I and 10 as the new facility fits perfectly with the master plan developed in this study.
ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT
The SPDFSS has three major divisions: Human Services, Support Services, and
Operations. The operations division is the largest and provides the direct services that citizens
receive. Between FY04 and FY 07 the fire department's budget increased from $43.IM to
$50.5M, an increase of 17 percent. Higher employee benefit costs have driven most of the
increase_ Averaged over four years, employee benefits have increased approximately $.8M each
year.
TriData, a Division of
System Planning Corporation
5
March 2007
Comprehensive Management Study
of the Saint Paul Department of Fire and Safety Services Final Report
Six individuals report to the fire chief including two uniformed assistant chiefs who are
at-will employees_ The span of control is reasonable in the supervisory and mid-management
ranks; however, there is an opportunity to reduce one layer of upper-level managemenL Primary
responsibilities of the three shift deputy chiefs include scheduling leave for shift personnel,
coordinating personnel assignments, and coordinating callbacks and overtime; these tasks can be
accomplished by shift district chiefs.
Micro-management is a problem especially at the higher levels of the department and
chief officers are performing routine duties that can be completed by supervisors and non-
uniform administrative staff The organization lacks sufficient depth within some of the
important functions like health and safety and planning is also a problem. To improve the
organization we recommend the following changes:
For Administration:
.
Creating a new position of director/ executive services and consolidating the
functions performed by the administrative manager and the budget/ finance
manager;
Combining payroll and other budget-related activities under a civilian manager;
Eliminating the assistant chief / human services position and transferring the
responsibilities to a civilian manager;
Creating a new position of public information officer, who would report to the fire
chief;
with personnel-related HR functions transferred to a civilian manger;
Creating a planning unit by merging the information services technician position
and the Firehouse analyst position_
.
.
.
.
.
For Operations:
.
Eliminating the classification of assistant chief or deputy chief such that there is
only one rank separating the fire chief from district chiefs;
Eliminating three shift deputy chief positions;
Creating a special operations chief (district chief) position to coordinate hazmat
and technical rescue;
Merging the EMS division under operations;
Placing the training division under the new technical services assistant chief, and;
Creating a health and safety officer position and placing it within the EMS_
.
.
.
.
.
T riData, a Division of
System Planning Corporation
6
March 2007
Comprehensive Management Study
of the Saint Paul Department of Fire and Safety Services Final Report
A new organizational chart was developed to show how the fire department can be
structured. No additional FTE positions are required to implement the new organization,
although some positions are reclassified.
Long-term planning by the SPDFSS is inadequate and the city's short two-year planning
horizon is not long enough for planning purposes. The planning cycle should be increased and an
eight or ten-year planning cycle would improve the fire departments ability to plan more
effectively_
Organizationally, the SPDFSS is in a state of internal crisis. The problems have not yet
affected delivery of service to the public hut could easily do so ifnot addressed_ Most of the
internal tension is between the fire chief and the firefighters union (Local 21). A 2005 survey
conducted by the union detennined that a majority of its members were critical of the
Department's direction. The absence of trust between firefighters and the fire administration is a
key factor affecting poor relations between labor and management
Fire personnel believe the administration is dispassionate and unresponsive; the
administration believes the union is non-collaborative aud uncooperative_ To improve the
situation, TriData recommends that an organizational development process called AIM, or
similar program be implemented_ AIM is an acronym for Assessment, Improvement, and
Maintenance. It is designed to enhance individual, team, operational, administrative, and
interpersonal functions.
Other recommendations to improve the organization include:
. Expanding key performance indicators to include benchmarks for prevention,
public education and EMS;
. Changing the organizational structure to four major divisions: operations;
technical services; fire prevention; and, executive services;
. Discontinlling the practice of shift deputy chiefs performing payroll and leave
accounting functions by upgrading the manual process to an automated time and
attendance system:
. Improving the fire department's strategic planning process similar to that
proposed by the Long-Range Capital Improvement Budget Committee;
. Providing additional training for officers in the use of computers; and,
. Developing a comprehensive organizational development plan_
TriData, a Division of
System Plarming Corporation
7
March 2007
Comprehensive Management Study
of the Saint Paul Department of Fire and Safety Services Final Report
RISK AND DEMAND
Emergency medical calls account for 79 percent of the total emergency service demand_
False alarms and routine calls for assistance account for 14 percent. Fires are only five percent of
the total calls. EMS calls are expected to increase over the next 10 years while fire incidents will
remain about the same, as projected for most U.S. cities_
Saint Paul has a much higher than average rate of EMS calls (per 10,000 population) than
do other cities while fire incidents were the second lowest per capita of the 13 communities in
the comparison group_ The already high and increasing number of EMS calls is the primary
reason to add EMS resources_ To reduce EMS demand per capita similar to other cities, it would
be helpful to educate the public. Per capita spending for fire and EMS services was slightly
higher than the average of comparison cities while the fire loss slightly under the average.
On average, Demand Zones 7 and 8 experienced the highest number of structure fires and
the highest average loss_ Zones 7 and 8 are located on the city's east and west central areas,
respectively. Demand Zones I and 10, which are in the city's south central region, experienced
the lowest number of structure fires and dollar loss_ A description of each demand zone and the
historical losses are provided in the report.
A key consideration for station location and resource deployment are the locations and
workloads of the fire and EMS units_ Stations without EMS units have substantially lower
workloads than do stations with an EMS unit. The higher workloads for the cross-staffed engine/
medic units is increasing their unit hour utilization (UHU) rate, which is increasing the response
time for other EMS calls. Several of the combined engine/ medic units have surpassed 3,000
calls per year and other units will reach this plateau by 2010. Call volumes and workloads of the
engines where medic units are not stationed are very low and the seven ladder companies are
reasonable; they are expected to remain so through 2020.
FIRE, RESCUE, AND EMS OPERA nONS
As noted earlier the SPDFSS is unique because the same crews staff both fire and EMS
units. TriData is not aware of any other metro-size cities that use the same approach. Since the
current approach was implemented there have been recommendations and attempts to staff fire
and EMS units independently, including a trial program at Station 19_ The trial was plagued by
poor implementation, therefore the results were unfavorable.
TriData, a Division of
System Planning Corporation
8
March 2007
Comprehensive Management Study
of the Saint Paul Department of Fire and Safety Services Final Report
A 1989 study of the SPDFSS recommended the following changes to operations:
. Move EMS to the operations division;
. Create three EMS shift supervisor positions;
. Discontinue the practice of dual staffing fire and EMS units;
. Eliminate the extra engines at Station 6 (Engine 15) and Station 23 (Engine 13);
. Reduce the number of stations form 16 to 13; and,
. Add a safety and health officeL
The findings and recommendations in this study validate many of the recommendations
in the 1989 study.
Operationally the SPDFSS is an excellent department where firefighters are aggressive
and well-trained. To its credit, EMS is institutionalized in the fire department However, there
are more suppression units than necessary for the current and projected fire demand and there are
too few EMS units. There are also two more rescue units than necessary and these could be
merged into one dedicated unit that would respond to the technical rescue and hazmat calls as
well as the more serious structure fires.
To address the anticipated increase in demand for EMS and lower demand for
suppression, the city needs to change its delivery system. Because of the internal labor!
management issues, the city should take a cautious approach and implement the changes
gradually. Options available to the city include:
Deployment Option 1- Current System Plus 2 Medic Units: Adds two additional
medic units, one to Station 8 and one to another station. On-duty staffing remains at the present
level (I 1I) and the number of stations remains at 16.
Deployment Option 2- Full staffing of 5 Selected Medic Units: Option # 2 expands
the improvements made to EMS under Option #1- Five of the 13 busiest medic units would be
fully staffed from the collocated fire units and two redundant engine companies at Stations 6 and
23 are eliminated.
Deployment Option 3- Full Staffing of All Medic Units: Option # 3 is a variation
of Option # 2 but increases staffing to the extent that all medic units are staffed independently of
fire units. A major disadvantage of this option is cost; therefore, it is not recommended.
TriData, a Division of
System Plarming Corporation
9
March 2007
Comprehensive Management Study
of the Saint Paul Deparhnent of Fire and Safety Services Final Report
Deployment Option 4 - Long Term Master Plan: This is the most aggressive
alternative and requires long-term planning. Under Option # 4 there would be 13 strategically
located stations, not 16 as there are now_ This option includes all of the operational staffing
changes in this study, including the elimination of two squads_ Under Option 4, 115 personnel
would be on duty and each of the 13 medic units would be independently staffed. Other changes
under this option include:
.
Eliminating two of the three rescues and merging special operations under one
remaining technicaV heavy rescue located at Station 8;
Closing Station 20 and relocating Ladder 20 to Station 23;
Relocating Ladder 10 to Station 19 when Station 19 is rebuilt; and,
Eliminating Station 7 (Engine 7) and relocating Ladder 7 to Station 17.
.
.
.
Our strategic plan recommendation is to implement Option # I immediately, followed by
Option # 2. After Option # 2 is implemented and the organizational development process is
completed, Option # 4 can be implemented. Other important recommendations include:
. Conduct a thorough analysis of the staffing factor, including military deployments
and other absences;
. Develop and implement a risk management program that includes mandatory pre-
planning of all high-risk structures: and,
. Change the dispatch protocols to reduce the number of units dispatched on
automatic alarm calls.
SUPPORT SERVICES
There are 27.6 FTE positions assigned to support activities: 16_0 to equipment services
and 6.6 to facilities maintenance. Five FTE positions are assigned to training. Recommendations
for Support Services are as follows:
Training -
. Add a training assistant (captain) to the fire academy;
. Discontinue training new recruits to the hazmat technician level, reserve this level
for those assigned to special operations:
. Develop a formal, prioritized plan for future facility needs of fire training;
. Hire a non-uniformed half-time technician (0.5 FTE) for fire academy
maintenance, breathing apparatus, ladder testing, hose testing, fit testing and
similar programs;
. Replace the uniformed A V technician with a civilian.
TriData, a Division of
System Planning Corporation
10
March 2007
.
Follow the IAFF/IAFC Joint Wellness-Fitness Initiative on cardiac stress testing;
Reinstitute the annual physical exam based on NFPA 1582 and the IAFFIlAFC
Joint Agreement;
Train several personnel on each shift to become personal training assistants_
Comprehensive Management Study
of the Saint Paul Department of fire and Safety Services Final Report
Health, Fitness and Wellness-
.
.
Apparatus Maintenauce aud Capital Planniug -
.
Fill the Vehicle Maiutenance Supervisor I position; fill the Vehicle Mechanic
Heavy Truck and Equipment position(s} after the supervisor has been selected;
Develop and implement mechanic certification requiremeuts consistent with
Emergency Vehicle Technician Certification Commission Standards;
Explore the feasibility of a five-year replacement plan to update the medic fleet;
Develop a long-term vehicle replacement plan and budget the necessary funds for
vehicle replacements_
.
.
.
To implement the recommended station location and apparatus deployment master plan
there is need to relocate two existing stations (5 and 19) and rebuild a current one (17) on its
present site_ The estimated cost for Stations 5 and 19 is $6.6 I M each, while the estimated cost to
rebuild Station 17 is slightly higher, $7.0M_ Estimated costs are based on figures provided by the
city_
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
City officials are concerned about the effectiveness of emergency preparedness and
whether the current organization is meeting the city's needs_ As the host city for the 2008
Republican National Convention, the city will be faced with planning that involves city, state,
and national agencies_
Although the fire chief is considered the emergency management director, two
individuals are primarily responsible for emergency management: the assistant fire chiefi'
operations and the chief of communications_ Both have other duties and emergency management
planning is accomplished at the expense of other pressing matters. Although short staffed, EM
has developed the foundational response plans but others are needed_ The city is also considered
one of the top five cities in the nation for radio interoperability, which is excellent
TriData, a Division of
System Planning Corporation
11
March 2007
. Develop and adopt Situation and Assumption information for each Emergency
Support Function (ESF) section in the Emergency Operations Plan;
. Develop and formally adopt Concept of Operation protocols for each Emergency
Support Function (ESF) section of the Emergency Operations Plan;
. Create response parameters (levels of emergency (ex: Level I, Il, Ill, IV ) for use
in emergency and disaster situations;
. Formally document the disaster declaration process;
. Formalize the operational protocols for rendering or requesting mutual aid and
capture financial accountability and mutual aid protocols in an appendix to the
Resource Manual;
. Create and adopt a Continuity of Government and Continuity of Operations Plan
for the city.
Comprehensive Management Study
of the Saint Paul Department of Fire and Safety Services Final Report
To improve emergency management we recommend that it become its own department
that reports directly to the mayor. It should be staffed with a fulltime director, planner, and
exercise specialist. Other recommendations to improve emergency management include:
IMPLEMENTATION
Critical to the city will be the process to implement the recommendations in this study.
As has already been mentioned, there arc severe issues between labor and management, issues
that need to be considered before and during the implementation process. I f success is to be
achieved, it is paramount that the administration solicits input from the various employee groups,
residents, and the city council.
If implemented, the master plan recommendations (Option # 4) in this report are a
significant departure from the way fire and EMS services are being delivered now. While the
deployment and service delivery recommendations contained in this report are considered
standard practice in larger communities, the city and fire department will need to move slowly in
the implementation process.
Study Review and Evaluation - The first step taken by the city should be to have the
findings and recommendations of this report reviewed by two groups: the fire department and
city residents. The fire department's review should include input from upper and mid-level
management, first-line supervisors, and representatives from both unions. The final product
should include a comment on each recommcndation in this report. Where alternative views or
recommendations are found these should be reported. The priority of each recommendation
should also be reported.
TriData, a Division of
System Planning Corporation
12
March 2007
Comprehensive Management Study
of the Saint Paul Department of Fire and Safety Services Final Report
At the same time a fire department review is conducted, a citizen's advisory review
should be conducted in paralleL The same methodology used by the fire department should also
be used by this group. Following the reports by each group, a single report outlining the major
recommendations and findings should be presented at public hearing for additional input_ Based
on the input of all groups, the mayor and city council can then be presented with specific
recommendations that can be developed into a strategic plan_
Strategic Plan - A good way to implement a strategic plan is to identifY the various
tasks and devise a time line_ Although a comprehensive strategic plan with timeline was not
within the scope of this study, we developed a simple version to show how such a plan would
look for the initial review process. The timetable is determined based on the start dates for each
task and it estimates the days necessary to complete each task. Microsoft Project Management
was used to develop the proposed plan_
The strategic plan timeline includes the organizational development (AiM) project that is
proposed in this study. The AIM project is considered critical for implementing the major
recommendations in this study_ Therefore it should be implemented in parallel with the study
reviews. Phase I of AIM targets the leadersbip team, including the fire chief, assistant chiefs, and
deputy chiefs_ Phase II includes district chiefs and Phase III incorporates line personneL
TriData, a Division of
System Planning Corporation
13
March 2007
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