Amador County – The Plymouth City Council leaned toward a 3-2 renewal of a fire services contract with the Amador Fire Protection District last week, but directed staff to prepare a comparison of offers from AFPD and the City of Ione. AFPD Chief Jim McCart and Ione City Manager Kim Kerr gave presentations on costs to offer fire services in Plymouth. The council leaned toward AFPD, with councilmembers Patricia Shackleton, Mike O’Meara and Jon Colburn saying they liked the leverage they would get with their funds and extra manpower AFPD would keep in the area. Vice Mayor Greg Baldwin said he would prefer to have the renewed pride of a city-operated fire department, which a contract with Ione Fire Department could help the city move toward. Plymouth City Manager Dixon Flynn said it might be helpful to have a summary, which he did not make before the Thursday, August 26th meeting. He said he “wanted to get a bottom line from both departments, and we have that now.” Flynn said a $239,000 a year subsidy from AFPD would be hard for us to make up,” and Ione cannot offer that. Kerr said “Ione is not going to supplement services,” and “what you pay for is what you are going to get.” She said $110,000 annually would get Plymouth a paid full-time firefighter during weekday daytime shifts. It would also include volunteer backups, along with per-call firefighter coverage overnight and on weekends, similar to a system Ione is now using. She said the numbers could be negotiable, but she recommended keeping the same salary and benefits that Ione Fire Department uses. Firefighter pay would be $42,000, with benefits, taxes and retirement another $25,000. AFPD would have a paid fire engineer at station 122 in Plymouth 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and a paid firefighter at the station nine hours a day, five days a week. Both estimates took into account Measure M firefighting funds. Kerr said it would be about $90,000, and McCart figured it at about $104,000 annually. AFPD’s $369,000 annual budget had Plymouth paying $129,000. Less the Measure M funds, it would be about $25,000 a year. McCart’s proposed contract was for 10 years, with three staff members around the clock, and an additional weekday, daytime staff member. Colburn said he liked the idea that they could also borrow funds from AFPD to complete the upgrade of the Plymouth firehouse. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Monday, 30 August 2010 06:12
Plymouth hears AFPD, Ione presentations on city fire service
Written by Tom-
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Amador County – The Plymouth City Council leaned toward a 3-2 renewal of a fire services contract with the Amador Fire Protection District last week, but directed staff to prepare a comparison of offers from AFPD and the City of Ione. AFPD Chief Jim McCart and Ione City Manager Kim Kerr gave presentations on costs to offer fire services in Plymouth. The council leaned toward AFPD, with councilmembers Patricia Shackleton, Mike O’Meara and Jon Colburn saying they liked the leverage they would get with their funds and extra manpower AFPD would keep in the area. Vice Mayor Greg Baldwin said he would prefer to have the renewed pride of a city-operated fire department, which a contract with Ione Fire Department could help the city move toward. Plymouth City Manager Dixon Flynn said it might be helpful to have a summary, which he did not make before the Thursday, August 26th meeting. He said he “wanted to get a bottom line from both departments, and we have that now.” Flynn said a $239,000 a year subsidy from AFPD would be hard for us to make up,” and Ione cannot offer that. Kerr said “Ione is not going to supplement services,” and “what you pay for is what you are going to get.” She said $110,000 annually would get Plymouth a paid full-time firefighter during weekday daytime shifts. It would also include volunteer backups, along with per-call firefighter coverage overnight and on weekends, similar to a system Ione is now using. She said the numbers could be negotiable, but she recommended keeping the same salary and benefits that Ione Fire Department uses. Firefighter pay would be $42,000, with benefits, taxes and retirement another $25,000. AFPD would have a paid fire engineer at station 122 in Plymouth 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and a paid firefighter at the station nine hours a day, five days a week. Both estimates took into account Measure M firefighting funds. Kerr said it would be about $90,000, and McCart figured it at about $104,000 annually. AFPD’s $369,000 annual budget had Plymouth paying $129,000. Less the Measure M funds, it would be about $25,000 a year. McCart’s proposed contract was for 10 years, with three staff members around the clock, and an additional weekday, daytime staff member. Colburn said he liked the idea that they could also borrow funds from AFPD to complete the upgrade of the Plymouth firehouse. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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