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Regular City Council Meeting Monday, March 26, 2018 Page 6 seem there is a model out there that does not have a rather significant number of paid on-call people in their stable as well as full-time firefight- ers. Fire Chief O'Neill explained there is no one right model. Each FD faces different challenges. There are quite a few tier-one suburbs that are strict- ly full-time: the Richfield FD is full-time, and Maplewood is transitioning to full-time. There will be a combination of different departments in plac- es like Edina and Coon Rapids. There is a variety in what works best for the community. He recalled the discussion five years ago, and there were a lot of challenges in maintaining a large part-time department, including a possible unionization of part-time staff, the Affordable Health Care Act, recruitment and turnover issues. None of those issues will go away. It is very challenging to recruit part-time people to the organization, and it will put the FD back where it was 4 years ago and the challenges. The biggest problem is retention and the costs associated with training and equipping. The average service time was less than 5 years. That model is broken. He noted that the Roseville FD will celebrate 75 years next year; there is a history of what has and has not worked. He emphasized that a part-time model is very challenging and is just a revolving door. Councilmember Willmus asked about the cyclical nature of plan review and inspections. For example, some Cities will go through times of eco- nomic retraction, and building inspectors are let go. Fire Chief O'Neill responded that multi-family inspections are scheduled during the first six months of the year. Permit-based inspections are heavier in summer and fall months. There is a lot of plan review in winter months, but most construction-type inspections are summer months. A few years ago, during the transition, the City started a proactive inspection program. During those less busy periods, the inspectors are sent out to do proactive inspections. Councilmember Willmus asked about the FD's inspections when the economy fluctuates. Fire Chief O'Neill responded that permit-driven inspections comprise about 15 percent of the inspections base. As those are in different cycles, it will not make a huge impact. The remainder of the inspections are steady. Mayor Roe asked if those slower economic times would be a good time for proactive inspections. Fire Chief O'Neill concurred yes,that is the case.