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Less than a month after starting the process, the Crescent City Council took a second step toward developing a hybrid fire department staffed by paid and volunteer personnel.

At the recommendation of city staff, Councilors on Monday unanimously approved increasing the 2019-20 general fund budget by $25,614 to pay for a contract between the city and Arcata-based Planwest Partners. Planwest will work with Bartle Wells Associates and Godbe Research, to determine whether the community would be receptive to a special tax to make such a fire department a reality.

“This piece is critical to be able to identify how do we go forward,” Crescent City Fire and Rescue Interim Chief Bill Gillespie told the City Council.

Gillespie referred to the resolution the Council approved Monday as “Phase 2a” of implementing a 10-year master plan for Crescent City Fire and Rescue. He also presented a schedule to the Council that included a timeline for conducting community outreach. Gillespie told the Council that Planwest representatives hope to develop a tax measure by the November 2020 election.

“It has to pass in the district and it has to pass in the city to be able to fund it,” Gillespie told the Council about a tax measure to pay for a hybrid fire department.

Gillespie told the Council that three members of the Crescent City Fire and Rescue Board of Directors approved an agreement with Planwest, though making budget adjustments requires a four-member vote. He said the fire district Board of Directors will take the matter up at its next meeting

The Crescent City Council and the Crescent City Fire and Rescue Board of Directors adopted the 10-year master plan for the fire department at a joint meeting Nov. 21. They also approved agreements with Planwest to begin gauging public opinion on paying for a hybrid fire department.

The master plan calls for hiring a permanent fire chief. Two candidates have already interviewed for the position and there is money available, Gillespie said Monday.

Ultimately, the fire department’s goal is to hire three paid captains who would work 48 hours on and 96 hours off and would be stationed at the fire station on Washington Boulevard. They would work with a crew of two volunteers covering 24-hour shifts at the fire station. According to the master plan, the volunteers in this “sleeper program” would be paid a small stipend.

Gillespie said creating the three paid captain positions and developing the sleeper program depends on extra funding through the potential tax measure. However, determining whether the community would support a special sales tax or a property assessment within the city limits is critical, Gillespie told the City Council on Monday.

He said a special tax would require a 2/3rds majority vote while a general sales tax would require a simple majority to pass. A property assessment also comes with different requirements to pass, Gillespie said.

“The polling portion, Phase 2A, really is the lead-in to identify how we go forward with our community outreach,” he told the Council.

Adding paid captains to the fire department’s roster and eliminating a deputy chief and a handful of maintenance positions would cost about $600,000, City Manager Eric Wier told the Council and Fire District board on Nov. 21. Implementing a fire station with paid personnel would cost about $1.6 million, according to Wier.

The master plan also calls for establishing an equipment replacement fund, increase community outreach by using social media and an upgraded website as well as providing training and incentive programs to potential recruits.

Implementing the master plan would require a total allocation of $662,000, Planwest Senior Planner Colette Metz told both boards.

On Monday, City Councilor Alex Fallman recommended, in addition to gauging the community’s appetite for a potential tax measure to pay for a hybrid fire department, to find out how it feels about Crescent City as a governing agency.

“Right now the only data is what’s on Facebook,” Fallman said. “This is a chance for us to get a look into our community. We can use this as a tool for other projects we want to pursue in the future.”

Wier told Fallman that many consultants who do community outreach on behalf of public agencies recommend finding out how citizens feel about their governing bodies.

“This will be, possibly, a look at not only our public safety in general but how they go about all those components,” Wier said.

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