The Falcon Fire Protection District held its regular monthly board meeting Oct. 18. All directors were present, along with Richard Shearer, legal counsel for the district.Peer counseling trainingDirector Mike Collins, who also serves as senior chaplain for the fire district, reported that he, FFPD Chaplain Dick Glasgow and FFPD Lt. Joe Cosgrove have become certified as peer counselors. Peer counseling offers the firefighters an opportunity to talk to someone with a similar background.Treasurerís reportFire Chief Trent Harwig reported that the fiscal year was 75 percent complete as of Sept. 30. The district received 98 percent of its anticipated revenue in the general fund. General fund expenditures were at 64 percent, which is 11 percent under budget. The capital projects fund, which is used for capital purchases ó including facilities, apparatus and equipment ó is at 99 percent of expenditures. Harwig said he does not anticipate this fund going over budget.County ambulance serviceHarwig reported that the El Paso County Emergency Services Authority board did not receive much support for options such as the formation of a special health district in order to maintain ambulance service when the county contract with AMR ends in 2019. At their meeting in November, the ESA board will consider a contract amendment that will remove any transport charge restrictions, allowing the current contractor to charge any amount they determine is necessary to provide emergency transport services to county residents.FFPD options include contracting directly with an ambulance service or forming its own transport service. Harwig said research has already started into the financial implications of a district-operated ambulance service, and he should be able to provide a report in the first quarter of 2018. However, he is ìcertainî that a mill levy increase would be required to fund ambulance staffing and equipment.SAFER grantHarwig reported that FFPD was not selected to receive the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response grant, which would have allowed the district to hire nine additional firefighters in 2018.Reserve firefightersHarwig said a new reserve firefighter academy will begin in November. He noted the reservist ranks have dwindled because the district has hired many of them for part-and-full-time positions.Incident statisticsFFPD had 200 calls for service in September, which equals a 22.7 percent increase over September 2016. Year-to-date calls totaled 1,805, representing a 16.2 percent increase over the same period last year.Meridian Road/U.S. Highway 24 intersection redesignDirector Tom Kerby reported that the project has been approved and is still on track. The plans still call for a right in/right out configuration at the intersection, with emergency traffic controls and mountable curbs for apparatus. Harwig said the district has reached out to Opticon for a proposal on traffic signal controls.Impact feesShearer provided Harwig with a copy of the Adams County intergovernmental agreement for impact fees, which will be forwarded to the county attorney for consideration.2018 proposed budgetHarwig reported that the district met the Oct. 15 statutory deadline for posting the 2018 proposed budget for public review and comment. He said the budget only spends what it anticipates bringing in and does not spend reserve funds. The budget can be changed as needed until the budget hearing, which will take place at the Dec. 13 FFPD board meeting.Final property tax assessment numbers will be received from the county prior to the budget hearing. Preliminary numbers show about an 8 percent increase in revenue over last year, but Harwig said if the Gallagher amendment hadnít reduced assessment rates, that revenue increase would have been closer to 16 percent.Staffing increaseHarwig said he anticipated hiring three additional full-time firefighters in 2018, as well as filling six existing part-time firefighter positions and providing a 3 percent salary increase for current employees. Hiring three more full-time firefighters in 2019 and another three in 2020 would bring staffing to three full-time firefighters on each of the three shifts at each of the three staffed stations. He noted that combined salary and benefits for even rookie firefighters is about $65,000 per year. He also said the district will continue to apply for the SAFER grant.Considering that the district is expected to be under budget by about $200,000 at the end of 2017, Harwig asked the board if they would be willing to hire the three additional full-time firefighters in November, instead of waiting until 2018. He explained that benefits for the new employees will not start until January 2018. The board agreed and directed the chief to hire the additional firefighters starting in November.
