I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the real public
for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
So we can just jump right into that meeting right away.
Yes. Okay.
We're here to discuss the fire contract and the board with the board.
The township fire board.
Oh, where do we want to begin?
Well, Mike, do you want to introduce a couple people?
Okay.
If you don't know what my center of fire chief.
Eric Weller.
I'm going to amend the board of counties here.
It's a little like township board members.
Would I make a server presentation?
Sure.
I can.
My thoughts and partner thoughts.
We talked to the outside meeting and we talked a little bit about what the general parliament is.
We don't feel we can get the residents in this area of coverage they deserve because of the response time.
It's, we had proplies.
It's not that far, but meeting them towards the way it's, you know, getting there.
The mayor placed down there's a long drive for us, you know, and it put this almost 50 minutes to our south and eastern.
Section that we cover and.
Well, we're that far out.
We give our residents in a town.
The car.
We need.
We're helping.
Um.
According to the county area.
Still so many thunder.
But that area averages around 2526 calls a year.
Those sessions.
We're running.
240 now.
We're pretty busy.
They're a small town department.
I'm very biased.
I think we have a third department.
I'm very biased on that.
Press quotes me on that.
I'm proud of our department.
But I think as long as they have an option to go to a closer department.
That is capable.
Our thoughts is we don't want.
We can't do the coverage.
Things are.
We'll be there immediately regardless of fires.
All right.
No cost.
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stuck.
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for the next three or contract that we divide and say it's pretty close to 70-30% of it
to either way. Whatever the real percentage is, 30% of things in the last contract, that's
what we need. We divide that up to a cover of 30% of our operating expense, and then we
divide it up by all sections. So, how that worked coming into a contract, how that worked
is our budget. You know, we're kind of predicting what passes for the confusion, runs the option
or they're all more into it. That's the decision that you guys as partners know. That's a thought
process offer that we decided to go ahead with in a few minutes. Okay. Thank you.
I was going to have it on the map.
I was going to have it on the map.
Can you see on the front there? It's at 6.30.
Thank you for joining us.
Hello, Dr. May and Dave Bay.
Hi, Ben.
Welcome.
Yep.
This is worth the day's pay.
Rick, you have anything to add or?
Well, we're just looking for all the help we can get.
Okay. With all the respect, the chief, I don't disagree with anything I would say.
The Janesville Fire Department does a fantastic job at the morning after budgeting, and it's
a fair distribution of expense.
We leery township feels like we're being creative on by the city of Madison Lake.
We don't really have a problem with their fire department, other than the fact that their equipment's old,
they're understaffed and they're underfunded.
We've tried talking to the city about it, and we're really not interested in anything that we have to say.
I think we've identified the problem with their funding issues over there, and they're putting a disproportionate percentage of the budget
upon the townships, and the city residents are not getting a free ride, but they're paying a much smaller percentage than Janesville, for example.
The city of Madison Lake, for 2025, was consuming about 45% of the calls, and they're only funding about 35% of the budget.
When we put it into perspective for leery township, of course, we're 32 sections, and we're covered by four different fire departments.
St. Clair, Madison Lake, Janesville, and Eagle Lake each cover, almost an equal portion, about a fourth of our township.
We pay more to Madison Lake for the fourth that they do than we do for the other three quarters of our township, combined with times two.
They're equipment's old, they need no equipment, they don't have the money, the city doesn't think it's necessary to fund it correctly.
They need a new fire hall, they get new trucks, it doesn't look as good as they won't fit the building that they've got.
They need radios, they need to turn out here, the list just goes on.
They do a great job with what they have.
At any time you go into a situation like this, you ask for everything that you can get.
When we've been willing to pair that back, it was getting an opportunity to help us a little bit.
For example, you're picking up half of section 12.
You pick up the other half of section 12, every little that helps us.
Then just geographically looking at it, section 11.
If we can just pick up half of half of 12 and allow it, that will go a long way towards helping us.
I understand that we've got a pretty broad coverage area there.
Does anybody else have anything to add to our conversation?
I guess one other thing I'll just mention, we realize that what we're asking is unusual,
and we're de-jumping in contract on that.
By adding more sections, using the current formula that you're using,
adding more sections to the township side of it is going to lower the cost per township to the rest of the townships.
We don't think that's fair if the other townships are to the city.
From that standpoint, we may want to look at it and add them to the contract until this one has expired.
Then we would pay a special amount per section for whatever area it is added.
It doesn't have to be what we're paying per section for a common ship rate.
It's something we're willing to negotiate with you.
We realize there's probably a little higher call volume there,
even in picking up that section than I have.
But we'd certainly be willing to work with that as well.
The chief comments about making it down by place in that.
That is the outer reaches of what we were asking for.
I live on Madison Lake right down by the P&R landing on the east side of the lake,
kind of down by the south side.
I drove it and clocked it.
You're spot on.
That's going to be a push, especially when you're on the other side of your coverage area.
Pretty much anything in the western boundaries of our coverage area with you right now is still going to be pushed in that situation.
Adding half a mile or a mile to it, I don't see how that has a major impact.
It's not necessarily just adding your district or your section.
By adding your section, we have to go to Lewis County now and have dispatch and everything reassessed.
They have to put a lot of money into redoing their mappings and things like that.
There's quite a big cost that comes along with this.
It's not just, hey, can you add these to your flyer calls and you just take them.
Because those calls are still going to go through to dispatch over there because this is Lewis County.
Now those calls have to get rewrote it to Waseka County.
Now Waseka County has to figure out on their maps where those are and whose area that is.
Then they have to change those calls.
So Lewis County has to change their mapping systems.
Waseka County has to change their mapping systems.
So those thousands of dollars that have to go into each county to add these sections.
So it's not just you asking us, can you just add these sections to your flyer calls.
There's more in tail here than just plus picking up your section.
You know what I'm saying?
There's a little bit more that goes to reverse the cost to the county.
We're going to bear clear the cost.
We'll be doing something.
There's only been almost 5,000 probably.
This doesn't happen very often.
So there's not no cost.
That also that I can include re-doing all of the maps that the departments have.
So assuming that this doesn't give Madison a kick in the pants to get their act together,
then we'd like them to.
Chief, will this time factor aside equipment-wise personnel-wise are we equipped to handle this?
Or are we going to have to restructure a little bit and also think about,
oh, we need another truck.
We need another 2-3 people to cover this.
I think personnel, we have to cover it.
So we're running 20 calls a year average now.
We had a lot of 20s of that.
If you're getting simultaneous calls, we get to 3-4 times a year now.
We could say that they go in streets.
It's based on most of our medicals that we cover as 2.
It's just the lake area over there.
Scared me a little bit with the response that we could provide for training the lake coverage, the actual lake coverage.
We've got 2 volts.
Basically, lake leaders are doing what we really cover.
I don't want to snick as a lot more water rescue stuff equipment and training that we do.
That part's going to end.
We'll probably both be on there regardless.
I don't know what it is.
It does cause some issues.
I mean, it's put a lake out for dispatch.
Where are you on the lake?
Which department do I send?
It gets confusing.
Not like they send everybody to something like that, but where you can really elaborate more on that thing.
Yeah, that will be an issue because 3-4 is going to be a very township as opposed to the other portion.
We have to look at that.
I think some of that with water rescue is how quick can you get there when you have for water rescue equipment both.
Both but also ice rescue stuff.
A lot of ice fishermen out there as well.
The other thing that Sarah said earlier is that the call transfer that will delay getting once the call comes in.
We have to take information and call transfer to that.
That's the additional step that will take a little bit longer.
I didn't know the other.
As you said, she was with medicals and 80% of the calls probably were one of those.
And there were 24, I think, with the correct number.
For the last year, it was just a year of 25.
In that area, the 200 is 120,000 hours per second.
Might even do you have anything to add?
Can you talk about doing this rather quickly?
I don't see any way we can do it until the contract renews at the first of the year if we decide to do it.
We're still working on finding another councilman here.
So technically, we can't go down a fire department issue.
I feel we can because it doesn't affect our wage.
We don't get anything monetarily for this.
Because I guess we've voted on plenty of things in the past outside.
I mean, it's mainly just our call wage and retirement things that we don't.
If the whole process is going to take some time to set up and establish the switchover,
it's not going to just happen on the first of the month.
If we have to assign new fire numbers to all those addresses and get everything squared away,
there is a time factor here.
Well, we were hoping to get something ironed out
one or another before the end of the calendar year.
The whole contract with Madison Lake is set to expire.
And they've implemented a new formula for how they're going to distribute the costs
and it's become even more aggressive.
The city of Madison Lake, with their new formula, has things stand right now.
Their percentage is going to drop from 36% of the budget down to 31%
and they're actually shipping more of the work more under the time it shifts now.
You know, and it just, for what it's worth, you know,
we've tried to negotiate a good faith with the city of Madison Lake,
the mayor of the city council and the city administrator,
and in public meetings, they told us we don't like it,
but we should learn on fire.
We'll start our own fire.
We'll go somewhere else.
We don't look at that like that.
It's a good faith negotiated.
They're basically delivering all commands.
We've got some people in our township that are
not happy with us even pursuing the idea of leaving Madison Lake
because it's going to have a major impact on their homeowners insurance.
And, you know, our goal here is not to punish people from that standpoint.
That's why we're willing to scale it back a little bit.
My take is, at this point, I feel that we're not ready to take on this extra territory.
That's mine.
It's my opinion.
I have to agree with that.
If this wanted to be talked about at contract time, that'd be one thing.
Which is actually December of 27, so it's one full.
Right.
But my take as of right now is, I think it's a little too far,
and we'd be there anyways probably,
there will be for any sort of structure fire.
Lake rescue probably, but...
My big concern is people's lives.
We're just not going to get there in time to save anybody.
You get somebody in the water, and we're not going to be arrested.
We're going to be in the recovery.
Madison Lake's right there.
And if we're having to call them from the usual days,
then that's your primary fire department.
If there's a structure fire, then we're calling them from the usual days
before we even get there.
That's your primary fire department.
And what service are we doing if we're constantly calling them
before we even get there?
That's definitely not a service.
If we're calling them all and saying,
hey, we need you from the usual days for a structure fire in your town,
but we're supposed to be there first.
And I sympathize with you.
I understand what you're saying.
I just...
And you're a bad predicament, but it's just...
People's lives are online for here.
It doesn't allow the time for us to get there.
There's property.
People's home owners insurance.
I think if you're saying other people are upset about this,
but you're here really wanting this to happen,
but other people aren't wanting this to happen,
then maybe you guys need to have discussions with other people, too.
I would assume by this point, Madison,
they had been made aware that you're having these conversations.
Well, it basically
sent out their proposed contract
that would go into effect January 1.
Well, did they send that out to make that decision before they told you to go to your own thing,
or are they aware that you're seeking our citizens?
Well, we don't necessarily have to
block hand-in-hand with Madison Lane when we're seeking our other weapons.
You know what I mean?
They've obviously told us both lives, right?
So, we're trying to fly today.
I mean, Andy and Fair, they have a kind of reason to sympathize,
and this is a lot.
I can't figure... I wouldn't do the same thing in your place.
My thought is,
Rod Stroke here, Madison Lane is just doing a power play,
or whatever they're doing.
If they suddenly know that you're trying to get us to take over,
and whatever, are they suddenly going to go,
which we made a mistake,
and they're going to reevaluate to make it work?
Well, I can't really speak to what Madison Lane is going to do.
It would be pretty...
It would leave a hole in their budget,
and it may force them to add the residents of Madison Lane.
They're paying their fair share of the fire courage,
as well as they end up doing it.
It doesn't sound like you guys can have much of an appetite for it,
but we appreciate having that on the spring.
Give them a stage of discussion about it.
Yeah, I don't think it's that we don't want to,
but I think, like Sarah and I both said,
it's just a little too far,
and it could potentially bring a lot of stress to some of our folks,
too, if we're getting there late.
Well, one of the things that has come out of this process
is that we've discovered we're paying for a couple of coverage,
and one of our sessions.
We're paying new guys, and we're paying them as late to cover the session,
and apparently it hasn't been going on for many years.
So we're going to be making some progress,
because there will be...
We're going to continue to have you guys cover the session in question,
but we are going to remove that from now.
Okay.
Have you looked into having, like, Eagle Lake take over 10 and 15?
Well, we decided to start here,
and seeing how this is going to go on this end,
and then if we made some progress here,
we wanted to open up a dialogue with the Eagle Lake
and see what kind of help we can get from now.
Jesus, are there any of this that we potentially could take over
and shut ourselves up in?
Like, if we didn't get into 11 and 10 and 15,
we just did that portion of 12.
Is that possible?
You know, cutting straight across over there.
I see the two.
I don't know what the section is, 15.
15 is 9-mile corner.
No, we're...
At one point we were talking about that,
but I think 10 and 15 are clearly off the table.
As things stand right now,
it would be just a issue to take the other half of 12 and 11.
I think that would be a step in the right direction.
And, you know, like I said earlier,
we will intuitively have amendment to the current contract
with an agree upon price recovered from that
independence of what the other townships are doing
so that it can be factored in in the next contract negotiations.