Overview
- The draft calls for a 10-year initial term with automatic six-year renewals and allows either city to withdraw with two years’ notice.
- Costs would be split 50/50, with each city retaining ownership of stations, vehicles, and equipment that would be leased to the joint department while cities handle capital improvements.
- Oversight would rest with a board of directors made up of both mayors, council presidents, and administrators, with a six-member fire commission managing hiring, promotions, and discipline.
- Implementation is outlined in four phases over roughly two years, and a consultant is evaluating whether to consolidate dispatch systems.
- Consultants estimate about $7 million in savings over five years, the joint nonprofit could qualify for an Innovation Fund grant, and officials took no action Tuesday as they prepare for December votes and an intergovernmental agreement early next year.