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CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION February 1, 2016 <br />DRAFT <br />46 Council Member Kusterman said he's heard some concern about what the pumper truck <br />47 may not be good at. Council Member Manthey responded that he's spoken with Director <br />48 Swenson about how this unit can be used for structure fires and he believes it is a little <br />49 low on volume for that use. For a structure fire he thinks the truck should have 500 <br />50 gallons of water or more. Council Member Manthey said he's concerned about what <br />51 equipment the department will need in the coming years and he'd like more review and <br />52 discussion about the schedule for replacing the fire engines. Mayor Reinert suggested <br />53 that a structure fire will draw more than the pumper truck. Council Member Manthey <br />54 said if the goal is to save wear and tear on the larger vehicles, this pumper wouldn't be it <br />55 then since it appears the larger vehicles will still have to be used and the firefighters will <br />56 still have to fully train with them. Director Swenson added that the pumpers would be <br />57 the first out vehicles and if an emergency involves a structure fire, the department would <br />58 continue to send what is necessary. <br />59 <br />60 Deputy Director D'Allier added that it's clear that the department has some apparatus that <br />61 needs to be replaced. It's also clear that the department will have to respond to some <br />62 medical calls. He feels the pumper truck is a good fit and further it would improve the <br />63 city's ISO rating. He is aware that other fire agencies are using these pumper trucks for <br />64 their everyday calls. He assured the council that staff has done a lot of work on how they <br />65 can extend the life of all the fire equipment and this is the recommendation. <br />66 <br />67 The council discussed how the purchase of one pumper truck could impact the plan; the <br />68 chassis of the truck may change for future years and so if the city were to purchase an <br />69 additional truck later, it could be different and have training implications. Director <br />70 Swenson suggested that one way to address that concern would be to purchase two <br />71 chassis, outfit just one of the vehicles and then implement the second vehicle later this <br />72 year or early next. He added that foremost in this discussion, he would like to achieve a <br />73 council action earmarking all of the $1.1 million coming from the CFD to the <br />74 replacement of fire department equipment and additionally have a plan for that <br />75 replacement. The mayor reminded the council that he supports an annual appropriation <br />76 to a replacement fund. <br />77 <br />78 The council discussed the cost of purchasing two chassis and outfitting only one. <br />79 Director Swenson estimated that cost to be almost $300,000. The mayor asked if there <br />80 is risk in purchasing two chassis; what if the city doesn't want the second vehicle. <br />81 Director Swenson remarked that he is certain there would be a market for the second <br />82 chassis if the city doesn't want it. Council Member Kusterman noted that depreciation <br />83 should be a consideration. <br />84 <br />85 Mayor Reinert stated that he supports the purchase of two chassis but outfitting only one. <br />86 <br />87 Council Member Maher remarked that she feels the council may be rushing this decision <br />88 because of a February order deadline (for truck orders). The department has only been in <br />89 full operation for a couple of days. If it's a question of the department may or may not <br />2 <br />