03-10-2003 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING MONDAY, MARCH 10, 2003 3. Mark DuCharme —Fire Chief, Excelsior Fire District — Continued • continuing the partnership. White asked how DuCharme felt about in -home sprinkler systems. DuCharme stated that he was in favor of them. While alarms and sprinklers have an initial cost, they are well worth the investment because sprinklers are an effective tool against home fires. Mayor Peterson asked if there would be a restriction against recruiting applicants from the Navarre area. DuCharme stated that they require applicants be able to reach the station within 5 minutes. They do, however, use common sense, so if someone lives just outside the 5 minute radius, they would still be considered for a position. The most important thing is that applicants have an adequate response time to the alarms. Sansevere asked about pension jurisdiction. DuCharme stated that the Navarre recruits would be covered by the Long Lake Fire Department. Fire fighters cannot transfer service with their pensions in Minnesota. By putting them under Long Lake, some fire fighters would be able to transfer to the new station without losing their pensions. He stated that 50 – 75 years ago, it was not uncommon for some departments to have large pensions, and others to have small ones, based on which were focused on protecting their pension funds and encouraging fire fighters to stay in their service. Murphy stated that in the corporate world, pension portability is a controversial issue because the whole point is to keep people with one company. There will be a lot of issues to explore in the next few years. Gabriel Jabbour stated that DuCharme is a full -time fire chief who also teaches fire fighter classes. He will be teaching the new recruits, which will give them the benefit of saving time and money by having local training. Sansevere stated they couldn't have found a better chief and staff to see them through the development process. DuCharme stated it was a team effort. When asked about his history, he stated he was born in Shorewood, the youngest of a dozen children. He came from the Brooklyn Park Fire Department and has over 20 years of experience. He was mentored by John George, a former Chief of the Minneapolis Fire Department. Murphy stated the City has a 20 -year fire service contract with Long Lake, and the Excelsior Department would be helping with training and service for 3 -years while Navarre is getting up and running. Murphy stated they are very lucky to have the Excelsior department and Ducharme to work with. Mayor Peterson thanked DuCharme for his assistance, and for coming to the meeting. • 2