The City Council said Wednesday that it was happy enough with
local fire protection to want to extend the contract for at least
two more years. Taking a suggestion from the 2002 Fire and
Emergency Services Master Plan, the council is also interested in
pursuing a single-agency format for the entire South Valley.
“Our experience with county (fire) is good enough, if not even
better than that, to warrant extending the contract,” said Ed
Tewes, city manager.
The City Council said Wednesday that it was happy enough with local fire protection to want to extend the contract for at least two more years. Taking a suggestion from the 2002 Fire and Emergency Services Master Plan, the council is also interested in pursuing a single-agency format for the entire South Valley.
“Our experience with county (fire) is good enough, if not even better than that, to warrant extending the contract,” said Ed Tewes, city manager.
Council agreed and voted 5-0 to pursue a contract extension in which staffing and cost will be the primary negotiating points. Council also asked staff to begin contacting other agencies about uniting into a single firefighting agency.
The city has had a contract the Santa Clara County Fire Department since 1995, after it closed down the Morgan Hill Fire Department during a severe financial crisis. SCCFD staffs the El Toro and Dunne/Hill fire stations and performs fire protection and safety inspections for the city.
When necessary, the department can call on the South Santa Clara County Fire District, based at and staffed by the California Department of Forestry station on Monterey just north of Watsonville Road. The agencies have a mutual aid agreement and frequently fight fires or attend to medical emergencies together. Every engine company provides advanced life support and paramedics since they can often reach an emergency before the local ambulance.
SCCFD Chief Ben Lopes agreed that relations between his agency and the city have been friendly and productive but urged increased staffing to increase protection for the area and safety for his men. Additional staffing was a critical emphasis of the master plan. Lopes said local companies respond to calls with eight or nine firefighters at a first alarm, where other companies in the county respond with 14 to 15.
Lopes also said staffing at the South County station should be increased for the same reasons.
The one-agency idea, uniting SCCFD, South County Fire and, possibly Gilroy Fire Department under one mutually beneficial umbrella has been bandied about for several years.
