• ABSTRACT: The cities of Monterey, Pacific Grove and Carmel-by-the-Sea retained CITYGATE ASSOCIATES, LLC, “to conduct a high level assessment of the feasibility to fully or partially consolidate their fire agencies.” The analysis includes Findings #1 – 21 and Recommendations #1-3. Regardless of consolidation or no consolidation, CITYGATE recommends that the City of Carmel-by-the-Sea add a “3rd full-time firefighter to the engine every day to staff this unit more effectively and at a level comparable to its neighboring fire departments.” The additional cost would be $400,000/year to the City of Carmel-by-the-Sea. Since small fire departments are “no longer viable in providing fully effective emergency services,” CITYGATE recommends that “Carmel, Pacific Grove and Monterey strongly consider forming a Fire Services Joint Powers Authority...merge the fire management teams of the three cities...and conduct long range planning necessary to actually merge the operating portions” of the fire departments.
FIRE DEPARTMENT CONSOLIDATION FEASIBILITY ANALYSIS FOR THE CITIES OF MONTEREY, PACIFIC GROVE AND CARMEL
Final Report
June 12, 2007
CITYGATE ASSOCIATES, LLC
MANAGEMENT CONSULTANTS
FOLSOM (SACRAMENTO), CA.
The cities of Monterey, Pacific Grove and Carmel-by-the-Sea retained Citygate Associates, LLC, “to conduct a high level assessment of the feasibility to fully or partially consolidate their fire agencies.”
Citygate views this “three city fire consolidation as a very cost effective way to improve the coordination, command, and control of fire services.”
FINDINGS #1 – #21:
Finding # 1: The availability of volunteers in communities like those on the Monterey Peninsula is rapidly diminishing and is not likely to provide an effective long-term solution to the need for readily available and trained firefighters.
Finding #2: Today’s regulations, responsibilities and competencies mean that a minimum command staff of seven chief officers – one fire chief, an assistant chief, three shift supervising chiefs, a training officer and a fire marshal, supported by clerical staff and inspectors can manage a five-station department. This represents a significant reduction from the number required in each city to separately administer that city’s fire department.
Finding #3: Given the current fire station spacing and topography, there is not an opportunity in a consolidation to re-locate or share fire stations, thus lowering the number of firefighters on-duty.
Finding #4: Given the considerable sharing that already exists at the operational levels, the three cultures have already taken many of the needed steps to operate more as one department.
Finding #5: Among all three agencies, the equipment and special training exists to a substantial degree to handle the risks present in the combined department area.
Finding #6: The three cultures understand the need to discuss in a positive format a consolidation and know if the technical details can be solved without harming the three cities’ services, that in the long run, a consolidated department has more positives than negatives.
Finding #7: Due to revenue limitations in all three cities, none of the departments has an adequately staffed fire prevention and public education function.
Finding #8: Due to city size and revenue limitations, even Monterey does not have the needed compliment of chief officers for a small department and should add a full-time fire marshal position. Given residency and increasing technical requirements on chief officers, both Carmel and Pacific Grove will have trouble replacing and maintaining a well-trained and adequately sized chief officer team.
Finding #9: A consolidation of the headquarters functions of the three cities would provide enough personnel that could more effectively handle both the field command and the specialty assignments than is presently done by each city separately or through the current contract arrangement.
Finding #10: If a full consolidation occurred, there are enough office support (clerical) positions to adequately support the combined command and fire prevention functions. Over the long-term, if Carmel and Pacific Grove could agree to one consolidated headquarters office location in a three-department consolidation, perhaps one half to one of the office support positions could be transferred away.
Finding #11: A consolidation of headquarters positions would not only save significant money for all three cities, but there would be a significant increase in supervision and program effectiveness by combining for the common benefit the existing headquarters staff.
Finding #12: The difference in retirement rates paid by the three cities is largely due to a difference in side fund obligation. If the cities decide to merge all or part of their fire departments, the disparate impact of this side fund obligation can be relieved by Carmel and Monterey funding this through a bond issue as Pacific Grove has already done.
Finding #13: A merger of either all employees or even simply a merger of headquarters units of the three cities will necessitate consideration with the employees of how to combine the different benefit structures. This is a “meet and confer” obligation for each city and may result in all of the cities agreeing to a higher benefit than they now provide in one or more of the benefit categories.
Finding #14: While combining or merging benefits from each of the cities could represent an added cost, once we compared the combination of salary and benefits for each category, we found that the added cost is not likely to be an overall significant number.
Finding #15: Carmel experiences a lower total cost for its 6 full-time fire safety personnel than do Monterey or Pacific Grove for their combined 63 line staff. The apparent difference as well between Monterey and Pacific Grove is partially due to a difference in the way each agency funds benefits, so that the actual difference to employees may depend on the tax status of each employee.
Finding #16: A merger of line and/or headquarters fire personnel will require some adjustment in cost for each city. However, as this report illustrates in a later section, the total cost of at least a single headquarters unit will be less than what is spent in combination by all three cities and represent a savings to each city even if the salaries and benefits paid to headquarters personnel is at the level of the highest paying city.
Finding #17: Without the reduction of personnel, there would little savings and the salaries and benefits for line personnel of the merged fire department would likely be that of the highest paying agency at the time of merger.
Finding #18: While there will be little, if any dollar cost savings from line merger, the three cities can expect an improvement in operational response to emergencies, employee retention and promotion opportunities.
Finding #19: Merged headquarters functions will save $1,300,000 at current salary and benefits compared to the staffing level that will be needed if each agency operates a separate fire department. In addition to the cost savings, the operational improvements argue in favor of merging all of the headquarters functions into a single unit.
Finding #20: A cost formula can be devised which will result is significant cost savings to each city. The more critical issue is the perception of “fairness” that each city has for the formulas.
Finding #21: Far more important than fiscal considerations are the operational advantages of consolidation and the creation of a fire department that is sized to provide effective service throughout the three-city area well into the foreseeable future.
RECOMMENDATIONS #1 - #3
Recommendation #1: The best-fit governance model for this consolidation effort would be Joint Powers Authority. The JPA Board’s powers would be limited in the JPA agreement so that the Board could not unilaterally impose costs on the cities without their advice and co-ratification.
Recommendation #2: Regardless of whether the three cities consolidate fire operations, Carmel and Monterey should pay off their CalPERS side fund obligation by issue bonds at a lower interest rate than is being charged by CalPERS.
Recommendation #3: Merge the fire management teams of the three cities to provide an immediate improvement in management support services and the structure to conduct the long range planning necessary to actually merge the operating portion of the three city fire services.
For the complete CITYGATE Feasibility Study, click on Post title above or copy, paste and click http://www.monterey.org/fire/news/feasibilitystudy.pdf
NOTES:
•The Citygate Associates, LLC Executive Summary includes Findings #2, #3, #4, #9, #16, #17, #18, #19 and Recommendations #1, #2, #3, inclusive. (Bold-type above)
• The report notes that all three cities have a “long and proud tradition of providing fire services.” It notes Carmel’s “early reliance upon, and continued participate of,” volunteer firefighters, which is increasingly problematic.
• “Of the departments reviewed in this study, Carmel has the most 'fragile' line firefighter staffing situation and, regardless of consolidation, should strive to add a 3rd full-time firefighter to the engine every day to staff this unit more effectively and at a level comparable to its neighboring fire departments;” Added cost would be $400,000/year to the City of Carmel-by-the-Sea.
• “Carmel has no management staff members of its own and likely would have trouble, given its size and fiscal situation, in recruiting several chief officers.”
• Carmel has limited clerical support positions, given the size of the department and the fiscal situation.
• As for Fire Prevention services, “all three fire departments are individually thin. Carmel contracts out new fire construction issues.”
• Carmel contracts with Pacific Grove for chief officer assistance and is working on contracting with Monterey for daily incident command coverage.
• The main drawback to headquarters consolidation of these three fire departments is “geography and road network.”
• “There is clear recognition that neither operationally nor with appropriate cost effectiveness can Carmel maintain its own fire headquarters function basically from now on.”
• Using 2006/07 salaries and benefits, Carmel “experiences a lower cost for fire safety personnel.”
• Estimated saving to the City of Carmel-by-the-Sea, $357,530.
• “The fiscal, legal and operational changes in the fire service make small departments no longer viable in providing fully effective emergency services.”
• Citygate recommends that “Carmel, Pacific Grove and Monterey strongly consider forming a Fire Services Joint Powers Authority...Merge the fire management teams of the three cities...and conduct long range planning necessary to actually merge the operating portions” of the fire departments.
REFERENCE:
M I N U T E S
REGULAR MEETING OF THE CITY COUNCIL
CITY OF MONTEREY
MONDAY, June 18, 2007
6:00 – 8:00 P.M.
Monterey Conference Center, Ferrante Room
MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA
City Council Special Meeting Minutes June 18, 2007
1. Report and Discussion on Fire Department Consolidation Feasibility Study for the Cities of Carmel, Monterey, and Pacific Grove (Fire)
Pacific Grove Fire Chief Miller introduced the staff report, giving a brief history of the shared services agreements between the cities. Dwane Milnes, Citygate Associates, presented the results of the Fire Department Consolidation Feasibility Analysis. Stewart Gary, Citygate Associates, presented additional details of the report.
Mr. Gary and Mr. Milnes answered the City Councils’ questions with regard to advantages and difficulties of consolidation.
Mayor Della Sala opened the floor for public comments. Charles Carter, Monterey, said that Monterey would be the biggest loser in a consolidation situation. John Fischer, Pacific Grove, raised questions regarding specialized equipment and risks. Char Carter, Monterey, questioned bringing three bureaucracies together and said that she does not believe in regional government.
August Beecham, Carmel Fire Department, agreed with the findings in the report and encouraged the Councils to continue the study. David Potter, Monterey Fire Division Chief, spoke in support of continuing to study the consolidation, noting the increasing number of calls and saying that each of the departments could do a better job by working together. Having no further requests to speak, Mayor Della Sala closed public comment on the item.
Monterey City Manager Meurer clarified that fire-fighting efforts are already a regional team effort without the benefits of a consolidated headquarters. He said that it is important to manage the risks. On question, Mr. Milnes explained the side fund obligations for each city. Mayor Della Sala clarified that no reduction in the number of fire stations is anticipated in a merged department. Pacific Grove Councilmember Bennett clarified that she anticipates that Pacific Grove paid volunteers would continue to serve.
Carmel Mayor McCloud thanked the City of Monterey for arranging the meeting. She noted that major metropolitan areas such as San Jose have only one fire department. Monterey Mayor Della Sala summarized the information that was presented, saying that this is an opportunity for a sustainable model for the future, and that it would be adaptable to changes.
Pacific Grove Mayor Cort thanked the Councils for coming together to collaborate. He said that he was proud to see Pacific Grove’s fire truck on Alvarado during the recent fire.
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business to come before the City Councils, Mayor Della Sala adjourned the meeting at 7:59 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted, Approved,
_____________________________ ___________________________
Bonnie L. Gawf, City Clerk Chuck Della Sala, Mayor
(Source: http://www.monterey.org/ccncl/minutes/2007/070618mspjt.pdf)
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