If Morgantown’s proposed annexation is successful, its fire and police departments will be tasked with covering an additional 3.83 square miles, which will increase the city’s territory by more than a third.
Morgantown’s draft annexation plan, which focuses largely on economic impact and offers broad statements about the personnel and infrastructure needed for the growth, states the fire department will have an “immediate need” for four additional firefighters and an additional fire engine.
The National Fire Protection Association recommends a minimum of four firefighters per engine, meaning it would be impossible to constantly staff the new engine to recommended safety levels with just the proposed “immediate need” hires.
In total, the four new firefighters, their equipment, the new engine, a 30% increase in overtime and an additional $100,000 for “other” will initially cost an estimated $991,000. Annual costs for the department will increase $1,740,000, according to the report.
Andrew Stacy, Morgantown’s public information officer, said the location for the new engine hasn’t been determined, but the logical place would be at a new station. He did not specify where it would be kept until a new station is available.
Hiring of new firefighters would begin immediately pending the annexation’s approval, he said. It takes six-eight weeks for a new hire to be placed on a crew.
Following the immediate needs, the report suggests the city will need an additional fire station, with room for a satellite police station to properly serve the newly enlarged city. The exact location of the new station has not been decided, however Stacy said the city’s airport has been discussed as a logical location.
The proposed station will cost an estimated $5.5 million. Additional fire engines, presumably for that station, would cost $1.8 million.
An extra 15 firefighters would be needed as well, at a cost of $1.5 million a year, the plan states. Those personnel would be supported by the revenues and fees from the proposed annexation area. The plan expects the project would “occur” within three to five years, meaning the project would begin within that timeframe, Stacy said.
He said the city is still exploring where the initial money for the immediately needed new firefighters, equipment would come from.
Police:
The report states the police are expected to see increased call volume in approximate proportion to the increased territory — so, about 36%. Some of that increase can be absorbed by the existing officers but more officers will be needed.
Another five police officers will be required to serve the proposed annexation area at the same level of service it currently offers the city, according to the draft plan. The number was arrived at by looking at the resources Monongalia County, which currently provides law enforcement for the areas through the Monongalia County Sheriff’s Department, dedicates to those areas.
Those officers, five patrol vehicles, five sets of equipment, a 30% increase in overtime and an additional $100,000 for “other” will cost $1,030,000 with a yearly cost of $810,000, according to the plan.
Extra support staff, to complement the department’s 12, will not be needed.
The report does not lay out a timeline for the hiring and training of the additional officers and they are not listed as an immediate need like the firefighters are.
As with firefighters, the city would immediately begin hiring new police officers after the annexation is approved, Stacy said. A new officer takes 12-18 months to hire and train.
EMS:
“If an annexation were to occur, it would not impact our EMS operation,” Mon EMS Special Operations Supervisor Patrick Cornell said. “We are a county-wide service with predetermined coverage zones.”
Efficiencies:
Despite more territory to cover, annexation should improve the efficiencies of both the fire and police, departments, according to the draft plan.
“One of the current issues that can impede response times is fragmented borders,” Stacy said. “Fragmented borders can create inconsistencies in response times for emergency services and other city services, simply because a house on one side of the street may not receive the same level of protection/city services as their neighbor and the direction of emergency calls to the appropriate first response agency may be complicated by these borders.”
Not done yet:
“There is no set deadline that the city plans to submit an application for annexation,” Stacy said. “We plan to continue to study the proposed plan, take public input, and make changes as necessary.”
The first of four public meetings about the annexation plan is scheduled for 6 p.m., tonight, in North Elementary School’s gym.
