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HomeMy WebLinkAbout[02] Minutes ST. JOSEPH Fire Board Agenda Item FIRE DEPT. 00.01100m [ION 0■10•■ MINIMA MEETING DATE: August 4, 2010 AGENDA ITEM: Minutes — May 12, 2010 BACKGROUND INFORMATION: BUDGET /FISCAL IMPACT: ATTACHMENTS: Draft Minutes REQUESTED ACTION: Approve the minutes for the May 12, 2010 Fire Board Meeting. 2:1 May 12, 2010 Page 1 of 2 Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, the Fire Board for the City of St. Joseph and Townships of St. Joseph and St. Wendel met in regular session on Wednesday, May 12, 2010 at 6:00 PM in the St. Joseph City Hall. Members Present: Fire Chief Jeff Taufen, City of St. Joseph Representative Bob Loso, St. Joseph Township Representative Jeff Janssen, St. Wendel Township Representative Greg Salk. City Administrator Judy Weyrens. Others Present: Minutes: Loso made a motion to approve the minutes of February 10, 2010 as presented; seconded by Janssen and passed unanimously. Financial Report: Weyrens presented the following 1st Quarter Fire Fund Financial Summary: Revenues $ $ 66,449.01 Expenditures ($ 24,439.43) Fund Balance $ $ 591,861.63 Weyrens stated that the 1 Quarter financial report includes the audited final 2009 fund balance of $ 549,852.05. The budget year ended with surplus revenues over expenditures. When the 2009 budget was prepared the Fire Board did not budget to fully fund the expenditures, rather, it was agreed to use reserves to fund any shortfall if needed. Based on the audited financial statement the reserve balance was not utilized for operation in 2009. Janssen made a motion to approve the 1 Quarter Financial Report as presented; seconded by Salk and passed unanimously. Fire Chief Reports: Taufen reported on the following: • The directional arrow has been installed on the Tanker with a total cost of $ 1,519.47. The Fire Board originally approved the equipment at an estimated cost not to exceed $ 1,000. In researching the options and looking for quality equipment an additional $ 519.47 had to be expended. The funds were available in the equipment reserve. • The Fire Department should receive notification in August if they were successful in receiving DNR Grant funding for the purchase of a fifth wheel. Loso made a motion to accept the Fire Chiefs report as presented; seconded by Salk and passed unanimously. Insurance Requirement: Taufen reported that City's insurance trust is requiring an inspection for vehicles that are 10 years old or greater if they are to be covered on the liability policy. The inspection must be from a certified mechanic and if repairs are needed it must be documented as does the repair. Taufen stated that the Fire Department has three vehicles that will need to be inspected with an anticipated cost of $ 80 per vehicle. Licensure Requirement: Taufen reported that 12 firefighters have not secured a Class B license with Tanker endorsement as required. When the Fire Board implemented the new Personnel Policy it became a requirement that all firefighters secure a Class B license with tanker endorsement and the City would pay for the additional license cost, provide the vehicle for testing and give all members two years to complete such. The two year window expires on December 31, 2010; therefore, Taufen presented the Fire Board with a letter that he will be presenting to each member that has not met the requirement. The letter is an acknowledgement that they previously have been informed of the requirement, were given a two year window to complete the requirement, and if they do not complete the licensure requirement by December 31, 2010 their retirement will be affected. 2:3 May 12, 2010 Page 2 of 2 NEW BUSINESS Membership: Taufen reported that Darrell Pfannenstein has submitted his letter of retirement effective May 10, 2010. He joined the department in 1980 and has been active until the recent years due to employment conflicts. Fire Hall Improvements: The City applied for and received grant funding to add handicap push button door openers for the front doors of the Fire Facility. The devices have been installed and are operating. New Members: The City received seven applications for three open fire fighter positions. All seven applications and the Fire Department Investigating Committee interviewed each candidate on April 27 2010. On May 4, 2010 the agility test was performed with only six of the seven candidates attending, the seventh candidate voluntarily withdrew at this time. The Fire Investigating Committee is recommending hiring the top three candidates, Brent Johnson, Mike Schmotzer and Michael Schmotzer and placing Brian Arms on a one year eligibility list. Loso made a motion to recommend the City Council accept the recommendation of the Fire Department Investigating Committee, hiring Brent Johnson, Mike Schmotzer and Michael Schmotzer as pay per response fire fighters effective June 1, 2010 and conditioned upon completion of the background check and physical. The motion was seconded by Janssen and passed unanimously. Confined Space Entry: Taufen stated that he was approached by the Public Works Director regarding confined space rescue. The City is in the process of updating the safety manual and one of the new policies the City must address is the identification of the rescue agency that will be responsible for confined space rescues. The Public Works Director has requested that the St. Joseph Fire Department serve in that capacity. Taufen stated that he is not opposed to being designated as such, but the department does not have the necessary training or equipment to respond to such. After discussion as to how other Cities handle this, Taufen and Weyrens agreed to research this matter additionally and report back to the Board when additional information is available. Control Burns: Taufen discussed requests from property owners to burn holding ponds as a training event. The most recent request was submitted by Knight Builders. Upon being questioned by the Board as to whether the burning of ponds is a good training event, Taufen responded that it is and the department is not opposed to such burnings. However, Taufen expressed concern that he does want the Fire Department to become the pond burners for the City whenever someone needs the pond cleaned. The Fire Board concurred with Taufen and established that the Fire Department will consider pond burning requests by private property owners only when training is needed. Adjourn: The meeting was adjourned by consensus at 7:00 PM. Judy Weyrens Administrator 2:4