04-25-2022 Council Work Session Packet

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1 CITY OF ORONO, MINNESOTA REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL FOR Fire and Rescue Department Operational Study 1. REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS. The City of Orono is requesting proposals from consultants experienced in the management and operation of paid and volunteer Fire/EMS departments to undertake a study of the City of Orono’s future Fire Department. The study and review should include the areas of organization and management, service areas, regulatory environment, historical operation, service demand needs, and future growth of the area and department. The consultant should be prepared to provide recommendations on transition of control of a fire department from one city to another and also the creation of a fire department from the ground up. 2. BACKGROUND. A. Agreement and Contract of Fire Services. The City of Orono currently receives fire and rescue services from the Long Lake Fire Department (LLFD). Current service is based on a 2002 agreement and contract for fire protection with subsequent agreements covering fire station ownership and expanded services. The contract provides ownership shares in equipment and facilities. As of the writing of this RFP the City of Orono provides ~85% of the departments operating budget and has 70%+ ownership interest in most of the capital equipment and facilities with some items being 100% owned by Orono. The City of Orono has formally notified the City of Long Lake that we will not be extending that contract arrangement beyond its current expiration date of December 31st 2025. At that time the City of Orono will have its own fire department. Currently there are two courses of action to realize and Orono Fire department: one, stand up a department from scratch or two, assume control of the existing Long Lake Fire department. The city’s preference is the latter but must be prepared for the former. B. Long Lake Fire Department (LLFD). The Long Lake Fire Depart provides Fire Service to the Cities of Long Lake, Orono and Minnetonka Beach as well as a portion of Medina. The department has 45 volunteer firefighter led by a full time Fire Chief. The department has two stations. Station 1 (Willow Drive) serves the northern part of the response area with the Station 2 (Navarre) covering the southern portion of the service area. The operating Budget for the department in 2022 is $536K. Ambulance services are provided by North Memorial. C. City Of Orono. The City of Orono is located in the west metro of the Twin Cities. The population is 8500 with approximately 3200 households. The city is predominately residential with some commercial area centered in the community of Navarre and around the boundary with Long Lake. The city is located along the north shore of Lake Minnetonka. The residential density varies with higher densities in the south along the lake shore and in Navarre and around the Highway 12 corridor in the north. The center portion of the city is low density with 2 acres plus lots. In addition to itself the city provides police service to the cities of Spring Park, Minnetonka Beach and Mound. The city’s Public works department provides service to the City of Spring Park.