The Falcon Fire Protection District held its regular board meeting Dec. 14 at 3 p.m. at the new FFPD building at 7030 Old Meridian Road. Directors Thomas Kerby, Ray Hawkins, Dan Kupferer, Mike Collins and Cory Galicia were present. Also present were Fire Chief Trent Harwig and attorney Joan Fritsche, legal counsel for the district.EPCSO substationKerby said Harwig was given notice to review a previously submitted development plan from El Paso County for the El Paso County Sheriffís Office substation in Falcon. Prior to that, the FFPD did not receive any requests for comments from the EPCSO to discuss these plans. Tom Seslar, El Paso County facilities contract project manager, and Brian Duggan, principal of D2C Architects, both representing the EPCSO, were present via teleconferencing to discuss the plan. Kerby addressed several problematic aspects of the development plan and suggested there should be further discussion about the work in progress, which might be outside of the scope of the original memorandum of understanding. He cited the water system, maintenance responsibilities and sewer lines as issues that need to be addressed. The EPCSO representatives apologized for the miscommunication and agreed to a meeting. They said that currently everything was on hold because of budget constraints. They will meet with the FFPD in January to resolve the issues.Treasurerís reportHarwig reported that 91.7% of the fiscal year was complete as of Nov. 31. The general fund had received 102% of budgeted revenues, and $159,702 over budget in revenues, coming from higher than anticipated interest on the accounts, along with workersí compensation reimbursements. Expenditures across the categories were at 89%. The ambulance transport fund has received 121% of budgeted revenues, $497,000 over budget, with $389,000 coming from an EMS Medicare supplemental payment, which was new this year. Also, there was $88,000 over budget in transport amounts. Across all expenditure categories, expenses are at 73%. The capital projects fund was at 102% revenue. Total expenses across all categories are at 56%, which was low because of budgeting for the maintenance building in 2022, which did not happen.Staff/operations reportsDeputy Chief Jeff Petersma reported that the department was on track to reach 4,100 calls for the year, about 500 more compared to last year. Response times did not change much based on the call volume, Petersma said. Non-ambulance automatic aid included a rare assistance to Hanover; non-ambulance aid received mainly came from Black Forest and Cimarron Hills. Reserve hours were up because of new recruits being released to the line.Kerby, EMS Division Chief Jon Webb, Harwig and Kupferer discussed an instance when three ambulances were already dispatched and another call came in. Kupferer questioned whether there was a need for an additional ambulance. Harwig said the newly acquired ambulance will not yet be in service full-time because of reduced staffing. With hiring new paramedics, there is the potential that it might be placed in service full-time in the future, Harwig said.Webb said there were 152 transports for November and 5,857 year to date transports. Webb reported that the department was selected for Medicare reporting, starting January 2023. He said the new ambulance received a temporary permit and was going to replace an ambulance with the highest mileage rate at Station 1.Administration buildingHarwig reported that all rooftop units are now installed. He addressed a few remaining open items: The gas line to the generator needed to be replaced to meet the code for the generator to be hooked up. A plumbing cap was dropped in a sewer line and caused a backup. A sewer camera inspection revealed a floor drain in the mechanical room was tied into an abandoned cast iron pipe, so the drain was diverted. A couple of windows were embedded with metal and needed to be replaced.Budget public hearingHarwig reviewed the overall budget items for the directors, pointing out that 2023 would show $200,000 less in revenue as a result of the mill levy drop. Reductions in expenditures offset the loss of revenue from the lower assessment rate for residential property. Harwig said he made an adjustment to the capital projects fund and increased principal payment for the lease purchase by $500,000 because the fund was carrying quite a bit of money. The budget included $1.6 million for a maintenance building, $850,000 for a brush truck re-chassis and part of the ladder truck, plus all the required equipment; $200,000 in contingency, for an ending balance of $1,451,000 after the annual $1.5 million transfer from the general fund. The capital projects fund was sound, Harwig said. The board unanimously approved the resolution to accept the 2023 budget.Stay connected with the Falcon Fire Protection DistrictWebsite: http://www.falconfirepd.orgFacebook: Falcon Fire DepartmentTwitter: @FalconFireDeptNextDoor.com
