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HomeMy Public PortalAbout20110630 public safety minutes 1 Public Safety Committee Meeting Call to Order The June 30, 2011, Public Safety Committee meeting convened at 8:05 a.m. by Chairman Councilman Harvey. Attendance Present: Committee Members: Councilman Mike Harvey, Councilman Bill Luebbert, Councilman Rich Koon, Councilman Dave Griffith, Fire Chief Bob Rennick, and Chief of Police Roger Schroeder. Guests: Mayor Eric Struemph, Councilman Bob Weber, Interim City Administrator Nathan Nickolaus, Cole County Emergency Management Coordinator Bill Farr, Assistant to City Administrator Melva Fast, Street Division Director Britt Smith, President of Fire Fighters Union Phil McKee, Brad Wright and Shannen Imsland from Peckham & Wright. Approval of Minutes Minutes from the June 2, 2011, committee meeting were approved. All voted in favor. Discussion of Agenda Items OLD BUSINESS Peckham & Wright Presentation on JCFD Station Study Chief Rennick stated Peckham & Wright were present to make a presentation. Interim City Administrator Nickolaus stated he had sent a letter to the City Council regarding funding for the fire station renovations and replacement. He recommends addressing lifesaving issues now, and addressing quality of life issues in the future. Chief Rennick introduced Senior Principal Brad Wright and Project Manager Shannen Imsland from Peckham & Wright, who gave their presentation, followed by a question and answer period. Interim City Administrator Nickolaus recommended proceeding with maintenance and vehicle exhaust items. Replacing stations at this time is not realistic. It will cost approximately $12 million to rebuild two stations, replace Station #3, and make additional upgrades. Chief Rennick is in favor of expanding stations 1 and 5, and keeping station 3 until a new one can be built. There is $800,000 from Sales Tax E available for renovations. The committee discussed the feasibility of issuing bonds to pay for station replacements. 2 Mr. Nickolaus made a recommendation to the committee that the City Council authorize $272,000 for lifesaving renovations. Councilman Griffith made a motion to move the issue onto the full City Council for approval. Councilman Koon seconded the motion. Motion approved. NEW BUSINESS COPS Hiring Grant Chief Schroeder stated this was the police department’s third year to apply for the Federal COPS hiring grant. This grant would enable the department to employ four officers for three years at no cost to the City. The City’s obligation would be to employ those officers for the fourth year. There is no obligation to keep those positions after the fourth year. These positions would be used for special assignment officers such as the CAT Team. When questioned about retaining those officers, Chief Schroeder stated those positions could be eliminated through attrition. The police department has a need for those four positions as there have been no additions for five years. The grant will go before the City Council for approval on July 5. 2010-2011 LLEBG Block Grant Chief Schroeder advised this is a formula grant and the federal government informs the department of the amount. Melva Fast is the mandated manager of the grant. She stated the LLEBG grant is also known as the Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) and the allocation for 2010 - 2011 is $24,921. This amount is shared with Cole County who receives approximately one-third of the grant. No agreement with the County has been finalized as of this date. The money is used to purchase equipment. Chief Schroeder advised the Council must authorize receipt and expenditure of the grant through a supplemental appropriation. Councilman Griffith made a motion to move the block grant onto the City Council. Councilman Koon seconded the motion. Motion approved. NRA Grant Chief Schroeder advised a grant for less than $1,000.00 had been received from the NRA. It had been applied for through the Special Services Division for use by the crime prevention officer. The NRA has already authorized expenditures of the funds. Councilman Griffith made a motion to move the issue on to the City Council to authorize receipt and expenditure of the grant. Councilman Koon seconded the motion. Motion approved. PUBLIC COMMENT Phil McKee, President of the Firefighters Union made several statements concerning the Peckham & Wright study. The cost of renovations for Stations 2 and 4 far exceed the value of the buildings. Peckham & Wright stopped looking at renovations after 50% of the cost of the building was reached. The cost will be higher than reported. He stated the damage from the tornado in Joplin brought forth the issue of seismic renovations and the need for safe areas at the fire stations. In his opinion, it would be a waste of money not to follow through with the 3 recommendations of the study. He also suggested saving money by hiring a firm to design a template for the construction of new stations. He thanked everyone for their considerations. OTHER BUSINESS Cole County Emergency Management Coordinator Bill Farr asked Street Division Director Britt Smith to talk about the City’s flood action plan. Mr. Smith provided the committee with a draft copy of the plan. He stated this plan was an effort to combine all action plans into one for the City. Missouri River levels approaching 30 feet is considered a minor flood while levels rising over 30 feet is considered a more significant flood. Both scenarios are combined in the draft. This is meant to be a living document with revisions made over time. Mr. Smith asked for the committee’s endorsement to make the draft an approved plan. Councilman Griffith made a motion to endorse the plan. Councilman Luebbert seconded the motion. Motion approved. Adjourn The meeting was adjourned at 9:10 a.m.