05-08-2023 City Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING May 8,2023 6:00 o'clock p.m. Benson asked if Van Eyll could express in general what needs to be fixed about our current system of fire service delivery. Van Ey11 said the biggest thing that really needs to be fixed is that Orono doesn't have a sustainable model for the future. Whether it's capital,whether it's our firefighters,the paid on-call model,response times, there's just kind of a list of things that need to be fixed,he said. He thinks the City is in a better position to be able to lead that change. The paid on-call model has been one of those models that is going by the wayside. Benson asked where data was collected from and how many outside individuals and municipalities were interviewed. Van Eyll said most of the data was from Long Lake Fire.He also talked to Minnetonka, Chanhassen,and Plymouth which have their own departments and Excelsior which has a combined model. Johnson said these are all good questions but what is in front of the Council now is approving the process to present information and get feedback so we can be prepared to ask questions.He urged Council members to ask their questions in advance so staff can be prepared. Benson said that is what she is trying to do. She said she would like to see more information gathered and would like to know who the Chief talked to. Edwards said staff can add an appendix to the report. Benson asked the Chief if he saw a benefit to having a public open forum and is a public forum planned? Walsh said it is not the purview of fire chief to figure out if a public forum is needed. Seals said her hope would be that would happen on May 22 when the public can come forward to ask questions. That is an open forum. She said she would also expect residents to reach out in between and ask questions directly. What they are doing that she hasn't seen in other cities, according to Seals, is giving a longer period of time for this information to sit out there and for people to give feedback. She said she is comfortable with the plan because it's giving a multiple avenues. She said she hopes the room is full May 22. Van Ey11 said he felt this process is better because it gives people a chance to get their questions out rather than hitting them with a presentation one night and making a decision from there. Benson said her preference is an open forum even if it means pushing out things a little further than that June 12 meeting. She said she thinks that would go a long way to instilling goodwill and a sense of understanding within the community as clear, consistent communication with the public is one of the key tenants of fire service and certainly changing fire service. Walsh moved, Seals seconded, to approve the Fire Department Needs Assessment Public Input Plan as presented.VOTE: Ayes 3,Nays 1 (Benson). Page 7 of 12