SOUTHAMPTON – An outside review of the Southampton Fire Department found no major issues with its operations. But the consultant suggested a major change for increasing staffing: Pay a neighboring community to put its firefighters in the Southampton station.
The review was paid for by the state as part of the town’s Community Compact agreement. The program provides funding for projects, in this case the consulting service of The Carlson Group.
The report focused on three primary areas: the relationship between town officials and the Fire Department, the execution of fire services and future planning to continue the delivery of those services.
The consultant, Travis Miller, suggested mostly minor changes to operations in his presentation to the Select Board Tuesday night.
“You’re getting a really good level of service for a community of this size,” he said.
But Miller’s suggestion on how to best staff the station was a radical departure from the Fire Department’s current personnel plan.
Miller suggested that the town consider soliciting proposals from area communities interested in staffing the Southampton Fire Department.
“Instead of contracting with 40 individuals like you do today, you’re contracting with one entity,” he said.
The model has been used in communities in Pennsylvania, Ohio and New York, he said.
Voters at the annual town election May 2 will consider a $135,000 Proposition 2½ override to expand Fire Department staffing. If that is approved, a second vote is needed at Town Meeting May 17 for final approval.
The Fire Department is currently staffed by firefighters, who are also emergency medical technicians or paramedics, between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. During evening and overnight hours, the department functions on a standby basis, with firefighters responding to calls from their homes.
But when no Southampton firefighters are able to respond to an after-hours call, ambulances from surrounding communities must be dispatched, increasing response time.
The additional $135,000 would allow staffing inside the station from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., when most emergency calls come in.
But regardless of whether the town decides to staff its department with its own staff or that of another community, Miller said the cost will be similar.
“My guess is the amount of money is going to be pretty much the same,” he said.
He said that town officials should have commissioned a study on the Fire Department before it signed an agreement with the state in 2011 to expand from basic-level to paramedic-level ambulance coverage. Such an expansion of coverage is the reason why the second shift is needed.
No funding mechanism for the expansion of coverage was put in place at the time the Select Board voted for the move.
Neither Fire Chief John Workman nor Town Administrator Heather Budrewicz worked for Southampton at the time that agreement was signed. Workman started as fire chief about a month after the Fire Department transitioned from basic to advanced level medical care.
“The town leadership has taken the major decision to pursue paramedic service without first considering the significant cost of providing this service, the need to staff it … and the ongoing effort to maintain this level of service,” the report reads.
Miller said that Workman has done well in closing gaps in coverage, which require a mutual aid response from surrounding communities. He said the number of calls responded to by mutual aid has gone down over the last year.
The Select Board took no action in response to the study Tuesday night.
Reached Wednesay, Select Board Vice Chairman John O. Martin said that the plan remains the same for funding the second shift with an override.
“Status quo for now,” he said. “A vote is a vote for a second shift with our own staffing.”
He said that town officials still need to thoroughly review Miller’s recommendations and ask him further questions before even considering the merits of his plan.
Workman referred questions about Miller’s suggestion on staffing to Martin, but did say he feels the department is going in the right direction.
“I feel like we’re taking the best, most cost-effective approach to high quality service now,” he said.
Miller suggested that Workman create a formal organizational plan of his staff to present to town officials.
He also suggested creating a formal system for keeping the Select Board in the loop about major events such as a fires and accidents as well as a schedule for the chief to make regular updates about the department’s operations.
Workman should also review his compensation plan for firefighters with Budrewicz to ensure that the plan is in line with the town’s “compensation philosophy,” the report reads.
Miller recommended that the department reduce the number of vehicles it maintains. It currently operates two ambulances, three fire engines, a tanker truck, a brush fire truck and a pickup driven by the chief.
Workman said he was pleased with the results of the study.
“I really do feel we have a great department,” he said. “The fact that the department is providing good quality service, that’s validating, because that’s the goal.”
He said he welcomes the opportunity to increase communication between him and town officials.
The Fire Department will hold open forums in advance of the override vote on April 26 and April 28 from 7 to 9 p.m. in Town Hall. Workman said the forums will give residents a chance to ask him and other officials questions about the override and general Fire Department operations.
Chris Lindahl can be reached at clindahl@gazettenet.com