CCMin_68Oct10_Meeting_w/citizens

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COUNCIL MEETING OCTOBER 10, 1968 - MEETING WITH CITIZENS REGARDING PROPOSAL TO RE-ORGANIZE FIRE DEPARTMENT Approximate 1 y 100 citizens were present, a s were many members of the volunteer fire department regarding the Village Council=s proposal for reorganization of the Falcon Heights Fire Department. Mayor Warkentien stated that Councilman Ecklund would present the proposal. Mayor asked jthat discussion from citizens present be reserve d until after the full presentation and that each citizen would be limited to speaking twice. He asked that when a; person is speaking, he be allowed to finish without interruption. He then introduced Norman Ecklund who is in charge of public safety, i. e. , police j department and fire department, who made presentation of proposal which is dated ~; October 3, 1968 and includes the background, history, present costs, comparisons, proposal, fire rating classification, costs if change is made, capital improvements, improvement of fire protection service and conclusion. Ecklund stated he would recommend adoption of the changes. Former Mayor Harold G. Nilsen made the following remarks. Inasmuch as his name was mentioned, he wanted to come forward and address the people. He is not used to speaking from the back of the room. Because we are involved in a proposal which affects ev every resident it would be well to go back and recount from the events prior to 1968. In 1955, he first ran in election for councilman. At that time village had a paid full time fire chief. At that time it was decided to have full time firemen and force, and he yeas representative for Fire Department then. Over the years, as we got sanitary sewers (his priority had always been sanitary sewer, waters fire and policed --going over all these years he has never gone to sleep at any time in this community worrying about if he had to call the Fire Dept because we have had a good fire department and good service over the years. Going back to an event which caused him to spend six months one winter drawing up an ordinance,. he thinks it was at that time that the paid firemen had felt .they should, and were, permitted to become members of the volunteer section of the Fire Department. As time went on, they became officers too. Then he introduced an ordinance and Nilsen believes to this day that, although they couldn;t get to more than a page of the ordinance, he thinks that those people today, re-reading that ordinance - it would have been a good thing had it been adopted. He is always thinking of the metropolitan concept. They went down to visit with Chief Oberg of St. Paul, and discussed the matter of contracting with St. Paul and fire problems at great length. St. Paul was faced with problems of its own and were in no p~ sition t~ take us over. Village had to buy their own equipment and start a department. He feels that at some stage of the fame there ought to be a county suburban area fire chief -consolidation of duties for efficiency. When we had Lauderdale, they were paying us, we thought they were getting by very reasonably and we suggested that they pay about $10,000 a year. A study was made by a lot of people who researched on this. As a result of those dis- cussions, Lauderdale decided to go to Minneapolis. Then we approached Roseville because we felt we had capacity to serve more and asked if we could service to Hamline Avenue and to the western limits from highway 36,, Roseville did not want to enter. into such agreement. Over the years, mutual aid agreements have been entered into. That agreement accrued to the village of Roseville and they had something to lean on because their fire incidents were greater. I think the Village of Roseville in a sense became dependent on Falcon Heights as far as fire service. The metropolitan concept gave thought to this again at that time. He appointed two citizens to study where we were going -and ~ at that time he asked Andy Hustrulid and Les Larsen. They met with the Fire Dept. Relief