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Who's best able to give fire protection? Baldwin Township officials at odds with city of Princeton, group of firefightersBy Joel Stottrup While representatives of the city of Princeton and about a half dozen area townships have met as an advisory group to review Princeton Fire and Rescue's services, some firefighters are criticizing information being put out by Baldwin Township on the subject. Baldwin recently sent out to its residents four pages of information on what a township committee has been researching to see if the township should start its own fire department. Baldwin also sent out a request to residents asking if any of them are "willing to serve the community as needed in the capacity of a firefighter." Six members of Princeton Fire and Rescue - Fire Chief Ritz Villebrun, James Roxbury, Greg Johnson, Randy Cook, Lance Stanley and Brad Hodgson - meanwhile, have been distributing to Baldwin residents two pages of information criticizing some of what the Baldwin fire committee has been saying. The Baldwin report, from a committee headed by supervisor Herb Murphy, begins by stating that over the past two years the Baldwin Township Board has noticed a "disparity" in the increase that Baldwin was being billed for fire service provided by the city of Princeton. It said that prior to 1995, the fire department had contracts with each homeowner in the area the department services and a homeowner would be billed $15 per year and receive a fire number for helping firefighters find the location. (This system was voluntary, meaning homeowners did not have to subscribe. But if firefighters were called to the location to fight a fire, the homeowner would be billed at a certain rate.) The Baldwin committee report points out that the fire department had told Baldwin it was having difficulty collecting the subscription fees and asked if Baldwin would collect it for them. "In the spirit of cooperation we agreed," the report said. "The new cost was given at $20 for [each of] 1,136 homes or $22,720. The [Baldwin] Board did not realize it had assumed costs, which would rise disproportionately for fire service from Princeton." The report showed the fast-growing township of Baldwin paying $22,720 annually during 1995-97, $37,040 in '98, $51,365 in '99 and $60,960 in 2000. Baldwin's percentage of payment of the annual fire budget is listed at 34.2 percent last year, 30 percent in '99, 38 percent in '98 and just under that from 1995 to 1997. The city of Princeton, the Baldwin committee noted, paid $12,240 annually in '95-97 for 20 percent of the budget, $17,475 in '98 for 18 percent, $22,78 in '99 for 13 percent and $39,460 last year for 22 percent. Baldwin's report also showed Baldwin having 63 occurrences for the fire department to be called during '99 and 69 in 2000, compared to the city's 93 and 110. Baldwin concluded the cost of occurrence in Baldwin during 1999 and 2000 was $815 and $883, while Princeton's was $225 and $359. Then the Baldwin committee listed what the estimated 2003 costs for fire protection and the setting aside of money for new trucks and other equipment and a new fire station would be for the affected townships and city. The report said Baldwin would be paying a total of $90,684, Blue Hill $11,226, Bogus Brook, $6,088, Greenbush $15,095, city of Princeton $80,853, Princeton Township $33,163, Santiago $1,939, Spencer Brook $16,343 and Wyanett $21,609. The Baldwin report did not mention that Princeton Fire and Rescue is contracted to serve all of the city of Princeton and townships of Baldwin, Princeton and Greenbush, and 90 percent of Blue Hill, 73 percent of Wyanett, 62 percent of Spencer Brook, 79 percent of Bogus Brook and 20 percent of Santiago. The Baldwin committee concluded that if the new fire station the city has proposed (at a cost of about $1.2 million) was paid off over 20 years, Baldwin would pay $1.8 million over the 20 years "plus other operating and truck purchase increases." The report said that Baldwin has asked the city about creating a joint powers board and that the city has rejected that, but would have an advisory committee made up of representatives of townships and the city. Baldwin's report then went into a question-answer format, saying that the proposed locations by the city for a new station would not have a radius of five miles reaching the south third of Baldwin homes. Cost to build Baldwin's committee estimates it would cost Baldwin $460,000 for its own department, which it said would have the following: "Adequate steel building with space to dry hoses, training space, an eight-inch well, sewer, insulation, electric heat and be on Baldwin's land for a subtotal of $320,000. Equipment including two pumper fire trucks, two tanker trucks and a grass fire truck." "We've checked the market," the committee wrote, "and can get tested, approved equipment with only 15,000 to 25,000 miles on them for about $130,000. With firefighter gear and communications, etc., another $100,000 for the [grand] total of $460,000. This would be four to five years of what we'd pay for Princeton. We would have full management rights of our dollars and would be better situated to cover our entire township." The committee noted that Baldwin owns five acres next to its town hall. The committee also talked about getting trained firefighters. It said it would like to recruit area residents and attract more women. "We have had inquiries already," the committee wrote. "We have a training schedule outlined." Next was the mention of ISO ratings, ratings that insurance companies place on properties and fire departments. The lower the number, the less premium a homeowner has to pay. The Baldwin committee concluded that the south third of Baldwin's homes "could be interpreted as having an ISO rating of 10 because of distance from the Princeton fire station, and that while people in the city limits of Princeton have a rating of 5, it is 9 or higher in the township. (Getting your own information may be a good idea. One resident who lives in Baldwin was told by Princeton Insurance that his ISO rating is five because of living within six miles of the Princeton fire station. Two Baldwin residents also mentioned receiving a good ISO rating because they are a certain distance from the Zimmerman fire station.) The committee report went into what it calls the "past attitude" by the city toward townships. It refers to a clause in last year's fire contract with townships stating that fire department calls within the city of Princeton "shall have priority over calls within the township, irrespective of when such calls are requested." The clause also stated that the fire chief or other fire department officer could, at their sole discretion, "decline to respond to any call for fire assistance and the city, the department and its personnel shall be held free and relieved from all liability to make said run or respond to said call." The Baldwin report pointed out that after complaints about this clause, the contract for this year was amended to read that the department would provide a "reasonable amount of fire protection" to townships. It also states now that if "multiple emergencies exist simultaneously, the fire chief in his or her sole discretion shall determine how to allocate department resources." The clause states the department would make every reasonable attempt to reach an emergency call within the fire protection area. "We plan to continue, for a period of time, to find a resolution with Princeton," Baldwin's committee said. "Another idea is that Baldwin builds the fire hall and purchases equipment. We pay for and own it. Maybe we can find an area [where the] city would be willing to work out a joint powers agreement just for personnel, the firefighters." The report mentioned other jurisdictions where there are joint powers agreements for fire protection. City administrator responds Princeton City Administrator David Minke responded last week to the Baldwin report. One was that the proposed 2002 fire contract with Baldwin is a $1,026 increase over the present contact of $60,960. Minke also noted that the portion of the fire budget the city would have to pay for 2002 is proposed to be $17,324 higher than the present $39,460. He noted that the city proposed to use a tax capacity and fire and rescue usage formula in response to Baldwin's criticism about the past formula. "Not only has the city offered to substantially increase the amount it pays for the department, but because the township contracts for fire protection at a given price, the city is obligated to provide the service for 2002, even if the actual cost is greater than proposed. "If the city cost is less, any balance is simply rolled into the reserve. Therefore, the city also bears all the risk without any special benefit. At best, we break even. At worst, we have to come up with more money to fund the deficit." Minke also took to task the Baldwin committee using the cost-per-call approach to claim the township is being overly charged. "The amount charged is the result of using tax capacity and usage, not per call," said Minke. "If we consider the factors used in the formula, the disparity is addressed. "For example, of the calls to Baldwin in 2000, the average time usage was 19.36 hours, while in the city it was 14.03 hours. Simply observing that the cost per call is different between two jurisdictions should not be surprising." Minke added that he feels the tax capacity and usage formula is fair and because Baldwin feels it isn't, it "should be the focus of discussion." Six firefighters give their report The six firefighters mentioned put out a report meant for Baldwin residents and it begins: "Do not let a couple of dollars a month jeopardize the quality and professional fire rescue service you receive from Princeton Fire Rescue, or your family's safety." The firefighters noted Baldwin looking into having its own fire department. Their report stated: "The average per-household cost of fire protection if the city built its new station as proposed, would rise $20 in Baldwin to end up at an average of $61 annually per Baldwin household." The firefighters pointed out the department's "up-to-date" firefighting equipment and its 40 active firefighters and said Baldwin has talked about having 15 firefighters and purchasing used trucks and other used equipment. "This appears to be an obvious step backwards as far as quality of protection and service is concerned," the six firefighters wrote. The six then talked about ISO ratings, noting the rating of five that Princeton Fire Rescue has, and said that if Baldwin had its own fire department, Baldwin homeowners could see their homeowner insurance premium rise as much as $40 to $150 per year. The report from the six firefighters also said that the 14 members of Princeton Fire and Rescue who live in Baldwin, "do not believe it would be in their best interest" of the Baldwin residents if Baldwin started its own fire department, and that the whole Princeton fire coverage territory would be better off if Baldwin stayed with the Princeton department. "The fire department has always said they will work with the townships on concerns that they have," they wrote. Nearly a half dozen Princeton firefighters were distributing the above information sheet on Saturday to Baldwin residents lined up with vehicles to get rid of junk at the Baldwin Town Hall site. Advisory committee meets The newly-formed advisory committee consisting of representatives of the affected townships and the city, met in city hall on Tuesday last week. The discussion at the meeting continued around what the city and the townships should do about the city's expressed need for a larger fire station to serve the area. One of the strongest criticisms of the city came from Baldwin Supervisor Bryan Lawrence, sitting in for Supervisor Jess Hall, the township's chosen representative. Lawrence said that while he hears Fire Chief Villebrun saying the city wants to work with the townships for better fire protection, he, Lawrence, still didn't feel he was getting that message from the City Council. City Council member Paul Whitcomb, the city's representative on the fire advisory board, disagreed with Lawrence's assertion about the council. Advisory board members all seemed in agreement that the area is growing in population and in homes. Spencer Brook Township Supervisor Robert Brom called the Princeton fire station terribly inadequate to serve the needs of the fire service territory. The fire advisory committee is to meet next on June 5 at 7 p.m. in City Hall. It was agreed that if a township wants to send more than one representative it can. The agenda for the next meeting will include selecting a committee chairperson and looking at maps of the fire-service territory. Princeton Union-Eagle |