Jun 22 2014
Board Members Present: Christina Gracey, Randall Knight, Howard Pope, Brian House
Approval of Meeting Minutes: Motion to approve March meeting mintues by Brian, 2nd by Randall, vote was unanimous.
Motion to table the rest of the agenda due to a fire in progress by Brian, 2nd by Howard, vote was unanimous.
Motion to adjourn by Brian, 2nd by Randall, vote was unanimous.
May 23 2014
Garden City Fire District
Board Meeting
March 20, 2014
Board Members in Attendance: Brian House, Randall Knight, Christina Gracey, Howard Pope
Others in Attendance: Mike Wahlberg, Tiffany Wahlberg, Anita Weston
Approval of Past Minutes: Randall emailed a few changes and Christina mentioned that the individuals going to Emmetsburg should have listed Tom, not Mike. Motion by Brian, 2nd by Randall, Brian, Randall, Christina vote aye. Perry abstained since he was not at the meeting.
Items for Follow-Up:
Policies and procedures: Leave, Per diem, and Holidays (Randall): Randall stated that he has been working on the employee section of the manual. He stated there is still a formatting issue, that will still need to be looked at. The only comment he received was that Christina and Brian felt that Mike should not be required to take 4 hours of leave at a time. Randall asked how time cards are kept. Mike stated that he keeps his hours on his phone and then transfers them to paper time cards. Randall asked about purchasing some software to track it. Tiffany stated that it doesn’t take long to pull the information off of his time cards. Perry stated that one of his concerns is that there are summer holidays, but that is when Mike should really be at the station. Mike stated that he ends up working more often than not on those days.
Randall asked if there was a savings account in place for paying out sick leave and vacation. Tiffany stated that there wasn’t a budget for that, but that there is a budget for the captains and assistant chief that should cover any time needed to cover for sick and vacation. Christina’s concern was that the carryover was smaller than what Mike could carry over of just vacation if it were separate. Christina also said that if the chief has good judgment, then having it all combined should not be a problem, but if the chief begins to not work, it could easily become a problem. Christina stated that the first sentence in Section 5-01(4) does not make sense. It sounds like the vacation and sick are combined and that only 24 hours may be accrued. This section should be changed to 160 hours of vacation and/or holiday hours may be carried forward from year to year. The holiday section should also say that an employee can choose to take these hours on a non-holiday or that if the employee has to work more than a certain number of hours, then he could use those hours on another day.
Howard voiced his opinion at the last meeting that he would prefer to keep it separate. Randall and Brian would like to combine it. Christina would like to keep it separate. Perry would be fine with either way. He would like to combine the two but make sure that the numbers stay fair. Randall would add a section to state that it has been combined. He would also reword everything to make it fit that situation. Christina would also like to add that Mike notify the board if he is taking personal time off. The board can also rewrite this section if it does become and issue in the future. This will be added to the items for follow up for next time.
Fire Chief contract/90 day probation (Randall): Mike and Perry both signed the contract.
Building interior remodel (Mike): Mike has been working on the remodel. He has looked at the windows and had a few contractors look at them. They appear to be in good shape, so he would rather not replace those now. With the money saved, he would like to put in cabinetry with doors in the meeting room and possibly in the offices if there are enough funds.
Items for discussion:
A wild land course started yesterday and will go through April 30.
DNR sent notice yesterday that the grant funds of about $15,000 reimbursement for PPE will finally be released within two weeks.
There is a water leak in front of the bays. The water to the station has been shut off. The repair will involve some damage to the new concrete and asphalt. This may require an amendment to the budget to pull some funds from savings. Hopefully there will be some funds available in other categories to move around to cover at least most of it. Brian asked if insurance would cover it. Mike will make some phone calls. Randall asked if the dollar amount would require bids. Mike stated he did make phone calls, but the only one he could find to come immediately was Lutz. The city did not want to take funds away from private individuals by having their guys work on it. Since it is an emergency situation, and Lutz is the only one available, it will go to him.
Vehicle/Equipment/Station Service Requests: None this month.
Purchase Requisitions: None this month.
Equipment Status: Engine 40 has been repaired. The seal was replaced and is doing well. Mike had to replace a trailing arm on the suspension on Rescue 40. When Mike had the tire swapped out from winter tires back to the mud tires, one was bad. A new one would be $600-700, so Mike ordered 4 new tires for about $700 total. The other tires are upstairs in case they need to be used in a pinch. Christina asked if there was a warranty and Mike stated that they have the standard amount.
Responses: 1 CO call, 6 medical assists, 10 burn permits. Brian asked if the fire district was involved in life flight yesterday. Mike stated that the district was not.
Brian stated that the city is looking at raising the water rates. Brian wondered if the fire district should look at raising the impact fees. The city’s rate will go from $35-42. Tiffany stated that the impact fees can only be spent on building, so this would be more of a property tax increase issue. Randall asked Mike to send out the 5 and 10 year plan so the board can review it. Randall asked Mike about the inspection fee. Mike stated that the double fee has not been used much. It would only be used in circumstances where the individual is not trying to take care of the issues prior to re-inspection.
New or Miscellaneous Business: The AEDs that were ordered after last meeting have been received.
Items for follow up:
Policies and Procedures-Employee Manual rewrite (Randall)
Review and Approval of Current Expense Invoices
Motion by Brian to adjourn, 2nd by Christina, vote was unanimous
May 12 2014
The May meeting of the Garden City Fire District Board is scheduled for 6:00 P.M. on Thursday, May 15th, 2014 in the training room at the Garden City Fire Station located at 145 West Logan Road.
Approval of Past Minutes
Items for Follow-Up:
Items for discussion:
Vehicle/Equipment/Station Service Requests
Purchase Requisitions
Equipment Status
Responses
New or Miscellaneous Business
Review and Approval of Current Expense Invoices
NOTE: The Fire Board may vote to go into closed session pursuant to Utah Code 52-4-5.
Notice of Special Accommodations: In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, individuals needing special accommodations (including auxiliary communication aids and services) during this meeting should notify Mike Wahlberg at the Garden City Fire District (435) 994-2460 at least (1) day prior to the meeting and please leave a message.
Jun 23 2014
May Fire Board Meeting Minutes
Garden City Fire District
Board Meeting
May 15, 2014
Board Members in Attendance: Perry Wakefield, Randall Knight, Howard Pope, Brian House
Others in Attendance: Mike Wahlberg, Tiffany Wahlberg, Anita Weston, Chris Coray
Meeting was opened for public comment. Chris Coray asked if the pipes in Sweetwater caused cavitation in the pumps when fighting the fire in Sweetwater. Mike stated that it did. The pipe is a 4” pipe. A 6-8” pipe is recommended. Mike said that it did affect the flow, however, it would not have affected the outcome.
Approval of Past Minutes: Motion to approve the March minutes. Second by Randall, vote was unanimous. Tiffany asked about the April minutes. The meeting was held, however, everything was tabled for this meeting. Tiffany will ask Christina for the brief minutes.
Items for Follow-Up:
Policies and procedures: Leave, Per diem, and Holidays (Randall): Randall sent out a draft copy of amended policies and procedures. Brian had sent him comments. Howard said that he felt that the sick leave being included could be an issue for a future chief. Perry stated that the vote held in March was very close. The board at that time felt that for tracking purposes this would be easier. If the policy is being abused in the future, then it could be revisited at that time. In the original policy, sick leave accrued with no limit. The board felt that a limit should be set that would be reasonable. Perry stated that he had read the manual, however it is a long read and there is a lot of redundancy. He feels that it would be best to have someone who has experience writing manuals such as this look at it. There are many policies the board should look at. Mike should also look at some of the policies for the volunteers. There was a case where a county sued a fire district and it became a conflict for the county attorney to represent both entities. The state has now regulated that the county attorney cannot represent the local and special service districts. Randall would like to see the fee for inspections be clarified. Brian would like to see the board contact BRAG to see if they have anyone who would be able to assist. They may also be able to refer the district to an attorney. Randall said that he could contact LeGrand Bitter with Local and Special and Service District or Ryan with the state auditor’s office. Mike and Randall will follow up with looking for an attorney who is familiar with special service districts. Brian House suggested that once an attorney is retained, the communication should go through the fire chief and/or chairman rather than individual board members.
Items for discussion:
Ride for Riley Benefit Lunch. August 16th, 2014 (Mike): There will be roughly 400 bikers riding from Riverdale to Preston and then back to Riverdale for this fundraiser. They will be stopping in Garden City for lunch and would like some assistance from the fire district. Mike offered the use of the grills and possibly some firefighters to assist. There should be minimal to no cost to the district. Howard requested that Mike ask the association to be in charge as much as possible. There may be some issues with food handling permits, etc. Chris Coray asked Mike to get him the information so that he could put it in the paper. Brian suggested that they contact the local restaurants to see if they would be willing to help out. Randall asked why the parking lot and/or city offices were being considered over the park. Mike said that the park was already reserved.
Additional Acceptances to the NFA in Emmetsburg, MA (Mike): Mike Wahlberg and Andrew Stokes have been accepted from the alternate list. The cost is $160/person for meals only. The training is covered by FEMA. Tom, Brandon, Travis, Andy and Mike will all be going. Randall stated that the per diem in the manual are pretty limited so that should be revisited. Mike said that in this case the flight and hotels are covered. The meals are the $160 fee. The district will rent a vehicle, so it should not be an issue for this trip. This will be Sep 7-14.
Non-short term rental business inspection fees (Mike): The businesses do not pay a fee for inspections currently, however short-term rentals do. Brian stated that this is because commercial buildings are built to commercial standards, whereas the short-term rentals are built to residential standards. The city only collects a fee on the residential. The city would not be willing to start charging the fee for the businesses, so it would be the responsibility of the district to charge. Mike stated that the house that was just recently converted to a business had a very similar inspection to the short-term rentals, but did not pay a fee. The city does require the inspection, but does not charge a fee. Howard said that $30 is not much to complain about. The district should be more concerned about whether it is safe. Mike does both inspections, regardless of whether there is a fee. Mike said the only difference in the two inspections is that commercial requires ADA, and sprinklers, whereas rentals do not. The board told Mike to let them know that the board has discussed it and they felt that commercial buildings are built to commercial standards and the rentals are built to residential standards. The board will revisit next month.
Vehicle/Equipment/Station Service Requests: No requests. Mike has replaced several batteries, filled fluids, etc. Howard suggested purchasing a simple battery tester. Mike stated that the station does have one. The ones that have had problems were ones that had been driven recently and suddenly stopped.
Purchase Requisitions: None this month. Mike has been working on the building remodel. He also purchased a GPS unit that will interface with the sheriff’s office equipment. After testing this one, Mike will purchase one more high-end one and a few cheaper ones. Brian asked if the missing rescue equipment had been replaced. Mike said it showed up back at the station, so he did not end up having to purchase a new one.
Equipment Status: All equipment is stocked and running well except Brush 42. Perry asked what the timeline is on the communication equipment. Mike is waiting to hear back on the AFG grant before purchasing. Brian asked about the Hazmat Technician training. Mike stated that he was unable to get any volunteers. However, the tech rescue team is coming together and includes fire fighters and search and rescue.
Responses: 1 structure fire, 2 brush fires, 1 propane leak, 1 CO, 1 school small fire. Brian asked if any of the responses were to short-term rentals. Mike stated that the CO call was, however it was not renters using the property at the time.
New or Miscellaneous Business: Randall asked who had attended training and asked for copies of the certificates. Randall had done it online. Perry said he is doing the training online. Brian had done the training, but could not get his certificate to print. Randall recommended emailing the test answers to Ryan Roberts, as that is what he had to do.
The Bear Lake Shake by the DNR has asked the fire district to do a fire boat demonstration on May 31. There will be a wild land engine academy training on the east side as well. Mike will pull a few firefighters off the training at lunch to handle the fire boat. Mike is going to put the boat in on Saturday. He will encourage the fire fighters to play around with the equipment on the boat for the next two weeks to become familiar with it.
Andy Stokes has been added as a Lieutenant. The Lieutenants will act as captains if one is absent. Last night there was an officer’s meeting. The officers would like to do a BBQ/Fire Awareness Night for all the area residents on the 4th Wednesday in June. They will have a fire safety trailer and a few other activities.
Randall asked how many fire fighters there are now. Mike said there are right around 26. Brian asked if there were turnouts for everyone. Mike said yes, however the new firefighters are in older turnouts for now. There will be a Fire I class in 2015. There will also possibly be a Fire II class in the fall. Mike will try to get a couple instructors from Bridgerland to help out with that.
Chris asked if Mike had a proactive plan to keep people from being stupid this summer. Mike stated that there have been a couple stupid accidents lately. Mike said awareness is the biggest issue. Mike is trying to recommend that if homeowner’s have items to burn that they do it now while the burn index is good. Chris Coray asked that Mike remember that the upper part of Sweetwater does not allow burning. Mike stated that he will inspect, but reminds them of the HOA rules. Mike would ask that Sweetwater revisit the issue and suggest that the HOA allow some of these burns early in the year. There are several homes that would be written off if a fire started due to items located around them. Allowing residents to burn under limited situations could actually be safer than eliminating fires all the way. Mike has been asked many times why the house in Sweetwater burned so quickly. He is trying to educate individuals at that time. Mike stated that part of the reason was that the doors were all open. There was also scrap material at the ignition site. By closing things up and moving away construction materials, homeowners can help the fire fighters quite a bit. Randall said the homeowners need to be made aware they should close all interior doors when they leave.
Items for follow-up:
Motion to adjourn by Brian, 2nd by Howard, vote was unanimous.