Monument Fire District, April 26 – Potential Gleneagle annexation ignites concern; Hayes recognized

Potential Annexation
Director recognition
Meet and Confer plus agreement extension
Financial report
Chief’s report
Recruitment efforts continue
First Due software
Zonehaven
Emergency Incident Support

By Natalie Barszcz

At the Monument Fire District (MFD) meeting on April 26, the board heard about the potential annexation of neighboring residents, recognized Director Terri Hayes for her years of service to the district, and approved an extension to the Meet and Confer plus agreement with L4319.

Secretary Mike Smaldino was excused.

Potential Annexation

Vice Chairman Roger Lance said he had read a message from Fire Chief Andy Kovacs about Colorado Springs proposing the annexation of Gleneagle. That would have a serious impact on the fire district, he said.

Kovacs said a resident had made a comment about the potential annexation in early April. The comment gave him cause for concern after all the efforts the district had made to consolidate the two districts over the past 2 1/2 years. Annexation would require the dismantling of the consolidation of the two fire districts, the loss of Stations 4 and 5, and revenue loss. The City of Colorado Springs has been discussing annexation possibilities for a few years, and a map exists showing potential annexation opportunities that include Gleneagle to Hodgen Road and Highway 83, areas that are in unincorporated Colorado Springs.

Meetings with Monument Mayor Mitch LaKind, town manager Mike Foreman, Donald Wescott Fire Protection District (DWFPD) board President Mark Gunderman, and some Gleneagle residents had taken place to discuss a vote allowing the residents to annex into the Town of Monument. Town Hall meetings with the residents are planned for summer 2023 to discuss the benefits of annexing into Monument, he said.

Director recognition

Lance thanked Director Terri Hayes for her contribution to the fire district during her tenure on the Board of Directors.

Kovacs thanked Hayes for providing a unique perspective during the board meetings since 2016. Hayes will be deeply missed by the district, he said. See caption.

President John Hildebrandt (attending via phone) said Hayes had been a wonderful voice for the citizens of the district and brought a lot to the board, and he appreciated her service over the years.

Note: Hayes will be succeeded by Randall B. Estes at the May board meeting.

Meet and Confer plus agreement extension

Kovacs said the district is still working through a revised Meet and Confer plus agreement with the International Association of Firefighters Local 4319, but due to time constraints a second extension to the existing agreement was needed for another month.

The board approved the second extension to the agreement, 6-0.

Financial report

Treasurer Tom Kelly presented the financial report for March and said:

The district had received about $4.7 million in property taxes year to date.
Overall revenue received year to date was about $6.2 million.
The projected annual income is expected to be about $16.5 million.
Overall expenses year to date was about $3.9 million.
The projected annual expenses are expected to be about $14 million.
General liability insurance is expected to increase with the added employees and equipment.

Lance noted the district had spent another $6,000 on snow removal for March and asked if a decision had been made to find another contractor.

Kovacs said the district had received three responses out of the 20 mailed requests but ultimately decided to keep the contract with Greater Grounds due to the distance of one contractor and the other would not provide any liability. The board approved a snowplow at its March board meeting and hopes that next year the snow removal costs will be lower, he said. See www.ocn.me/v23n4.htm#mfd.

The board accepted the financial report as presented, 6-0.

Chief’s report

Kovacs said the following:

The lease-purchase agreements for two new fire engines had been paid off for a total of about $825,000.
He had the opportunity to attend the district’s annual live fire training at BFFRPD for all three days. The firefighters all did an outstanding job.
The district completed 639 training hours in March.
The district is now averaging a manageable number of requests from American Medical Response (AMR) and accepted three out of five calls for assistance from AMR in March.
A retirement ceremony for Battalion Chief Mike Keough is scheduled at Station 1 on May 13 at 8 a.m.

Note: For more information, see DWFPD article on page < 12 > and the Station 4 “push-in” ceremony in snapshots on page < 27 >.

Recruitment efforts continue

Division Chief of Operations Jonathan Bradley said he and Battalion Chief Micah Coyle had participated in a student job fair in Greeley. About 100 fire science students were in attendance, but about 30 fire departments and some private ambulance organizations were also looking for recruits. The district’s application pool is about 50% below previous years. Former colleagues from the mountain fire departments are having greater difficulty recruiting, with staff commuting 100 miles west from Denver to those stations, he said.

Hayes suggested the district recruiting staff try attending local recruiting events.

Kovacs said departments are offering signing and moving bonuses to recruit staff.

First Due software

Battalion Chief Scott Ridings presented First Due software, a system that will tie into the Computer Aided Dispatch system. The software is designed to store important information that can be retained for future calls to aid firefighters before they reach an incident. The residents and business owners will be able to input information such as special medical equipment and pets on the premises. Participants will be required to confirm and update information annually, and will be prompted for a couple of months before data is deleted.

Kovacs said staff will begin collecting information from about 650 businesses in the district. Details will include information such as occupancy, building height, type of store, square footage, special hazards, and stairwells. The information will be loaded into the system by the district staff, identifying the higher-risk buildings first.

Ridings said First Due will tie into the accreditation process. Lance said the software will push the district further toward achieving higher accreditation.

Kovacs said the district will notify the residents and business owners at the end of May with a district-wide mailer, with some print advertising and social media links to encourage participation.

Zonehaven

Kovacs said Zonehaven software was adopted and purchased by the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office for every agency in the county. Zonehaven is designed to assist with evacuations and lockdown situations, and will tie into the district wildland pre-plans. Residents do need to sign up individually for Peak Alerts to receive notifications, he said. To sign up for Peak Alerts, visit www.monumentfire.org.

Emergency Incident Support

Emergency Incident Support (EIS) board President Gary Nelson thanked Kovacs for a recent invitation to support a mass casualty incident event in June. Without the monetary support from Tri-Lakes Women’s Club, Pikes Peak Club, and more recently Monument Hill Foundation, EIS would not be in a position to provide those services to first responders. EIS is proud to support the event, he said. For more information, visit www.epceis.com.

The meeting adjourned at 7:50 p.m.

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Meetings are usually held on the fourth Wednesday of every month at Station 1, 18650 Highway 105. The next regular board meeting is scheduled for May 24 at 6:30 p.m. Meeting attendance is open to the public in person or via Zoom. For joining instructions, agendas, minutes, and updates, visit www.monumentfire.org or contact Director of Administration Jennifer Martin at 719-484-9011.

Natalie Barszcz can be reached at nataliebarszcz@ocn.me.

Above: From left, Fire Chief Andy Kovacs presents board Director Terri Hayes with an acrylic plaque recognizing dedicated service since 2016 to Monument Fire District. Photo by Natalie Barszcz.