Public Safety (Subcommittee of the City Council)

PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE MINUTES Wednesday February 13th, 2019 Taftville Volunteer Fire Department 134 Providence Street, Taftville 7:00 PM Committee Members Present: Alderman William Nash, Alderman Joseph A. DeLucia and Alderwoman Joanne Philbrick. Committee Members Absent: None. Administration and Staff Present: Mayor Peter Nystrom; Alderwoman Stacy Gould; John Salomone, City Manager, City of Norwich; Chief Patrick Daly and Captain Jim Veiga, Norwich Police Department; and Chris LaRose, Operations Manager, Norwich Public Utilities. Volunteer/Central Fire Departments and Others: Taftville Chief Timothy Jencks; Norwich Chief Tracy Montoya and Lieutenant Jake Manke; East Great Plain Chief Keith Milton; Occum Chief Carroll Spaulding; Laurel Hill None; and Yantic Chief Frank Blanchard. Citizens Present: None. I. Call to Order and Quorum: Alderman Nash called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM. There was a quorum present. II. Approval of Minutes: Minutes of Wednesday January 9, 2019. Alderman Nash motioned, seconded by Alderman DeLucia, to approve the Wednesday January 9, 2019 meeting minutes. The motion passed unanimously. III. Correspondence: None. IV. Citizen Comment: None. V. Old Business: a) Apparatus/ Equipment Financing: – Alderman Nash stated that as City Manager John Salomone was not in attendance this item would be moved to next month’s meeting agenda. VI. New Business: a) Norwich Public Utilities Update – Operations Manager Chris LaRose stated it is a quiet time of year and encourage departments to let NPU know when a hydrant is used so it can be drained properly. Mr. LaRose stated they are continuing to monitor the reservoirs which have been overtopped since September. Chris LaRose also invited all emergency responders to join NPU in the spring in discussions on what to do in case of dam failures. b) Emergency Management: Lieutenant Jake Manke reported Emergency Management has coordinating with FEMA on presidential disaster declarations and receiving funds and he receive the final FEMA report on the Host Community Exercise. Lieutenant Mane stated the report listed only minor issues in planning which have already been revised. Lieutenant Manke stated Emergency Management has also been working with Backus Hospital’s Emergency Operations Center to establish a VOIP agreement so during any emergencies they can have a face-to-face connection. Lieutenant Manke encouraged the Committee that whenever a disaster occurs for the city to complete a full evaluation as the city can possibly receive a 70% reimbursement from the federal government. Lieutenant Manke reported that Chief Montoya will become the Acting Emergency Management Director once training is complete and he will become the Deputy. Lieutenant Manke reported capital budget items include the requested stake body pickup and a seconded Emergency Operations Center was an alternate is needed. Lieutenant Manke stated they are tentatively looking at the training room in the Norwich Fire Department headquarters. c) American Ambulance: None. d) Norwich Police Department: Chief Patrick Daley gave a PowerPoint presentation on 2018 vs. 2017 crime statistics and changes throughout the years. Chief Daly reported that the new MRAP will become an Armored Incident Response and Rescue Vehicle to assist the police during bank robberies and other crimes of that nature and that so far only NPD funds have been invested in the vehicle. Chief Daly stated they have two new officers, a new narcotics dog and two detectives graduate from the NYPD Homicide Investigator Academy. Chief Daly announced there is a community survey regarding the NPD on the city website and encouraged all to take the survey and spread the word. Chief Daly said current challenges include the MDT system in their vehicles which have been down almost daily which has lead them to pull officers off the street whom have computer backgrounds so they can offer in-house assistance. He stated currently the vendor is working to figure out the problem along with an outside subject matter expert. Alderman Nash asked if the NPD had any idea what the anticipated cost would be to maintain the MRAP vehicle. Chief Daly responded they do not have an exact number yet but the small armored vehicle would be taken out of service along with its insurance and maintenance cost and some of the large-ticket items for the MRAP may be accessible through government funding.  Alderwoman Philbrick stated in regards to the MDT issues the City should invest in an IT person that specifically handles public safety issues. Chief Daly agreed stating that utilizing his officers in-house takes away from their duty time and the IMC bridge is still ongoing as Leon does not have the two solid weeks required to wrap the project up. Alderwoman Philbrick asked Chris LaRose of NPU if he could talk to City Manager John Salomone about lending one of their IT people to the city. e) Firehouse Status Updates: Taftville: Chief Timothy Jencks reported Taftville has been busy with 46 calls so far this month including dive team assistant in Stonington to search for a vehicle in the Pawcatuck River. Chief Jencks stated the new apparatus project is ongoing; a PO has been produced, they are finishing up on final work and waiting on gearing specifications from the manufacturer. Chief Jencks reported capital needs include a parking lot expansion amongst various other items. East Great Plain: Chief Keith Milton stated EGP had 67 calls in the last month and have been conducting monthly trainings. Chief Milton stated the new apparatus process is going well with a revised PO being sent out as the first was made out to the incorrect company and their current apparatus went down to maintenance recently. Chief Milton said the staircase is still up at the firehouse as there have been minor issues between the building department and the contractor along with the weather. Occum: Chief Carroll Spaulding reported they are currently at 28 members with 17 calls in the last month. Chief Spaulding said the department formed a recruitment committee to bring in more members but have one new instructor, two new EMRs and one member going into Fire 2 in March. Chief Spaulding stated he is currently working on capital needs but for next year’s budget items that former Chief LaChapelle listed include resealing upstairs floors and firehouse parking lot, rims for Engine 41 and brass gate valves on the trucks. Yantic: Chief Frank Blanchard reported membership is at 60 with 59 calls in the last month. Chief Blanchard stated the City Manager recently assisted Yantic in getting a PO for Engine 32’s burn out generator, Rescue 3 was out of service a few days during the month, Squad 36 was out for several days during which time Fleet Maintenance noticed significant rust which they were able to repair and a PO was issued for the replacement of Engine 31. Chief Blanchard said the Fire Marshall Abatement project went through the bid process with the City Manager and purchasing but because funding is short the City Manager allowed the project to be split into two phases so the work can get started. Chief Blanchard reported the firehouse is back in order from September flooding with $50,000 total in damages that were covered by insurance. Chief Blanchard stated in the upcoming budget they will be listing the HVAC installation on the firehouse first floor, the underground fuel tank design, and ventilation in the Annex with possible expansion. Chief  Blanchard reported Yantic firehouse purchased a small parcel of land adjacent to the firehouse for parking using their own funds and also unexpectedly had to repair their HURST strong arm along with other tools. Laurel Hill: None. Norwich: Chief Tracy Montoya reported they had a moderate month with 244 calls and have two new recruits starting the academy. Chief Montoya stated their new Marine 1 is almost complete with a delivery planned the last week of March and the new Battalion vehicle is currently being outfitted and should be in service by the end of the month. Chief Montoya said that Squad A has been having continuous maintenance issues as well as both Squad A and Engine 2 having seatbelt problems but the city garage was able to fix the issue by swapping parts. Chief Montoya stated capital budget items include the need for a spare tower as the one in Greenville has been officially condemned, the replacement of Squad A and the replacement of the Fire Marshal vehicle. VI. Other: a) IMC Bridge Update: None. b) Police Dept. MRAP: Chief Daly discussed the MRAP during Norwich Police Department’s update. VII. Future Agenda Items: a) Apparatus/equipment Purchase Bond Update b) IMC Bridge c) NPU IT Person Lent to City VIII. Adjournment: Upon a motion by Alderman DeLucia, seconded by Alderwoman Philbrick, the meeting was unanimously adjourned at 8:27 pm Respectfully Submitted, Katherine Rose