MINUTES OF COMMISSIONERS MEETING
March 9, 2004
The March 9, 2004 meeting of the Board of Commissioners of the San Juan County FPD #2 was called to order by Chairman Harvey Olsan at 7 :30 P.M. at the Eastsound Headquarters. The meeting was attended by Commissioners Bob Phalan and Clyde Duke, Chief Gary Bennett, EMS Division Chief Eimers.
INTRODUCTION:
Chairman, Harvey Olsan introduced the Commissioners and Chiefs and read the Commissioner Meeting Management Statement.
MINUTES:
A motion was made by Commissioner Olsan and seconded by Commissioner Duke that the 2/18/04 minutes of the regular meeting of the Board of Commissioners be approved as read. The motion was voted upon and approved unanimously.
A motion was made by Commissioner Phalan and seconded by Commissioner Olsan that the 2/26/04 minutes of the Special meeting of the Board of Commissioners be approved as corrected. The motion was voted upon and approved unanimously.
FINANCIAL REPORTS:
A motion was made by Commissioner Olsan and seconded by Commissioner Phalan to approve the March General Fund vouchers 21647-21692 in the amount of $87,037.04. After discussion, the motion was voted upon and approved unanimously.
A motion was made by Commissioner Duke and seconded by Commissioner Phalan to approve the Revenue Fund vouchers 21693-21696 in the amount of $2800.80. The motion was voted upon and approved unanimously.
CORRESPONDENCE:
There was no correspondence.
CHIEF AND EMS SUPERVISOR REPORTS
The monthly reports by EMS Division Chief Eimers and District Chief Bennett were read. Copies of the reports are attached and incorporated by reference. The Public Education report was submitted to the Commissioners for their review of projects, a copy of which is attached.
There was discussion of the on-going maintenance issues likely being caused by rough use of the SCBA’s.
Chief Bennett noted he had received a thank you letter form the Clemens whose structure was used as a training tool by the district. They provided gift certificates to Bilbo’s for all those participating.
PUBLIC COMMENT:
Pierrette Guimond brought up her concern about the purchase of sod for the Station 21 property. Leith Templin concurred and stated she felt it was impractical and a waste of water. There was discussion of the lack of sprinklers.
OLD BUSINESS: 1. Strategic Planning Proposals: Chief Bennett reported he had written a letter to Emergency Services Consulting, Inc. "ESCI" regarding their evaluation and expressed the criticisms which have been discussed about the report. A copy of the letter is attached and incorporated by reference. There has been no response by ESCI to date.
Garth Eimers presented a proposal for consideration of three alternatives to dealing with the strategic planning process. There was general discussion among the Commissioners regarding the pros and cons of each plan. A copy of his proposals are attached and incorporated by reference. Mr. Eimers noted there a number of firms which could serve as moderators for the process. Commissioner Phalan suggested a questionnaire or survey to the public as an alternative.
The Commissioners concurred that each of the plans should include interview of the Commissioners and staff to get an idea of issues. There was general consensus that each geographical area may have different needs or issues.
Commissioner Duke suggested process C included a structured profile with professional input. Additional steps could always be included and all processes should include community input.
Commissioners agreed that the working/planning meetings held each month could and should be held in different parts of the island. Scheduling those should be part of the next working/planning meeting.
2. Chief Search Status Report: Commissioner Duke noted that the telephone contacts undertaken by Clyde Duke, April Duke and Steve Garrison have produced many interested candidates and sources who have referred other potential candidates. There are approximately 30 candidates who have good qualifications. To date about 10 have returned resumes. Several of the candidates have family in the vicinity. The two issues which seem to be of importance to the candidates during the initial conversations are wages and benefits and the functioning of the Board of Commissioners.
Clyde Duke is hopeful of calling together the entire search committee as early as March 13, after the two volunteers have been selected to begin the evaluation process.
3. Insurance Options: Chief Bennett has investigated other districts and found that the liability coverage has been increased by most districts. He has not yet received quotes from Baldwin Resource Group on the liability coverage options, earthquake coverage or costs for the new equipment. There was discussion about comparing the insurance costs with our claims record, particularly for earthquake coverage. The issue will again be address at the April Meeting of the Board.
4. Magellan Group/EAP legal services: Magellan Group has no Fire District currently subscribing to the legal services portion of the EAP. They have provided only one reference to a company using that benefit. Chief Bennett recommends that the matter be revisited during the budget planning process.
5. Rosario Utilities: Chief Bennett through Fred Munder attempted to intercede for the Fire District in providing a more reasonable rate for the minimal usage at station 23 while maintaining our right to water. It is possible that Rosario Utilities is in a defensive posture because of their legal challenges over water permit access. Commissioner Phalan objected to keeping our water permit for a possible future residency program. Commissioner Duke and Olsan, however, believe it is a commodity we cannot afford to eliminate. If there were no usable public restroom in the facility we would still have to fund an alternate for a port-a-potty and regular pumping. The Commissioners concur that it is unfortunate that Rosario Utilities in not cooperating.
NEW BUSINESS:
1. Town of Friday Harbor/ Amendment to Intergovernmental Agreement: This documents amends the existing contract and sets the rate for the fire boat response at $250/ hr.
A motion was made by Commissioner Olsan and seconded by Commissioner Duke to approve the Amendment #1 to the Intergovernmental Agreement with the Town of Friday Harbor. The motion was voted upon and approved unanimously.
2. Policy #47 re: Sleeper Room: A motion was made by Commissioner Duke and seconded by Commissioner Phalan to revised Policy #47 regarding the sleeper room usage. The motion was voted upon and approved unanimously.
3. Mission Statement, Values and Operating Principles: Chief Bennett noted that the document was discussed at the last working/planning meeting and was well received by the Commissioners. Chief Bennett has added a section regarding The Individual. He recommends that the document be adopted for the District
A motion was made by Commissioner Duke and seconded by Commissioner Olsan to approve the Mission Statement and Statement of Values and Operating Principles. The motion was voted upon and approved unanimously.
It was concurred by the Commissioners and Chiefs Bennett and Eimers that the volunteers must be given an opportunity to review the document, have training on its ramifications and get a commitment from all the membership to endorse the policy. Ultimately all the membership would be required to sign the agreement committing to the Mission Statement, Statement of Values and Operating Principles.
ISSUES:
Commissioner Phalan thanked April Duke for her volunteering with the Chief Search process. He reminded Chief Bennett that the FEMA grants end on March 30, 2004. Chief Bennett is in the process of drafting a response.
Commissioner Phalan noted that number of SOP’s require updating. Chief Bennett is currently working on the driving standards which should be available for the April meeting.
The Commissioner’s discussed the adoption of new standards for physicals for the volunteers in accordance with the NFPA Standard. There are conflicts with HIPAA and issues to resolve with the volunteer personnel. Garth Eimers has requested a proposal from Miklos Preysz for his company to do the physicals. Chief Bennett commented that training doctors to do the evaluation without patient care is challenging. Chief Eimers noted that when the standard is established, the doctor must frame his opinion within the framework of the standard. There may be a lack of consistency if multiple doctors are used. Other districts have found that initially the membership is highly resistant, but hopefully come to see the advantages. The implementation would be based upon the premise that the District has a moral obligation to its personnel. Commissioner Phalan suggested voluntary physicals initially with the requirement implemented for the new membership. The report by ESCI should have addressed some of the issues involved. We may lose members. Should alternate duty be an option, should the policy be uniform throughout. These are all topics which could be discussed at a workshop/planning meeting. Commissioner Duke noted the District needs to be proactive in this matter.
Commissioner Phalan suggested that consultants could be hired to do the research on available grants and submit grant requests. He provided an internet site from the WA Community Economic Revitalization Team, a copy of which is attached, which gives some information on funds available. He will do more research and provide information on specifics reflected in the handout.
PUBLIC COMMENT:
Leith Templin: Initiated discussion on the impact of I-864 on the fire district. Chief Bennett noted that a recent document from Assessor Paul Dossett addressed that issue. He stated that our Fire District is exempt until 2015. Both EMS and schools are exempt. The County will be heavily affected if the initiative passes. PUBLIC EDUCATION ABOUT THE ISSUE IS NEEDED. Chief Bennett announced he met with Kiwanis and handed out the Department of Revenue calculations.
Leith Templin discussed information she got from discussions by the Board of Directors of the Orcas Library regarding their Head Librarian search process. She urged that all members of the committee have experience reading resumes. She discussed the differences between a search "sub-committee" and an "advisory group" She stated that candidates should be rated.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
3/17/04: Meeting of the Board of Commissioners- working/study session 5:00 PM
Topics will include: Health Standards & ramifications; grants; Initiative 864 and the Chief Search process.
4/13/04: Regular Meeting of the Board of Commissioners – 7:30 P.M.
LOCAL BOARD OF VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTERS :
The Local meeting of the Board was called at 9:05 P.M.
The local Board minutes are prepared and kept under separate cover
A motion was made by Chief Bennett and seconded by Commissioner Olsan to adjourned the Local Board of Volunteer Firefighters meeting at 9:13 P.M. The motion was voted upon and approved unanimously.
EXECUTIVE SESSION:
An executive session was called at 9:15 PM for a personnel issue pursuant to RCW 42.30.140 (g) to evaluate the qualifications of an applicant for public employment or to review the performance of a public employee. Commission Chairman Olsan suggested the meeting would last approximately 20-30 minutes. The meeting was back in session at 9:40 P.M.
ADJOURNMENT:
There being no further business the regular portion of the meeting was adjourned at 9:45 PM.
Minutes of February 6, 2004 Orcas Fire District Commissioners meeting
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