Public Safety (Subcommittee of the City Council)

PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE MINUTES Wednesday June 12, 2019 Yantic Fire Department 151 Yantic Road, Yantic 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: Captain Jim Veiga, Norwich Police Department; and Barry Ellison, Norwich Public Utilities Volunteer/Central Fire Departments and Others: Taftville Chief Timothy Jencks and Assistant Chief William Hadam; Norwich Chief Tracy Montoya; East Great Plain Captain Jay Coleman; Occum Chief Carroll Spaulding; Laurel Hill None; and Yantic Chief Frank Blancard. Citizens Present: None. I. Call to Order and Quorum: Alderman Nash called the meeting to order at 7:04 PM. There was a quorum present. II. Approval of Minutes: Minutes of Wednesday May 8th, 2019. Alderman Nash motioned, seconded by Alderman DeLucia, to approve the Wednesday May 8th, 2019 meeting minutes. The motion passed unanimously. III. Correspondence: Alderman Nash received minutes from the Norwich Public Parking Commission regarding parking concerns around Norwich Free Academy that will be added to the agenda for discussion at next month’s meeting. IV. Citizen Comment: None. V. Old Business: Apparatus/ Equipment Financing: a) Alderman Nash stated City Manager John Salomone had let him know he would not be able to attend this meeting. Captain Jay Coleman reported on behalf of East Great Plain that their delivery date is tentatively February 20th. reported that Taftville is having a delay with chassey for the rescue truck due to a backup with manufacturer so they have September 1st delivery date of the chassey arriving to the builder. Chief Blancard stated Yantic’s committee met with manufacturer representative for pre-construction meeting on engine and received an estimated delivery date of November to December of this year. VI. New Business: a) Norwich Public Utilities Update – Barry Ellison reminded the departments to please submit hydrant usage to Tom Cutler and reported the reservoir levels remain at 100%. Barry Ellison stated NPU’s hydrant flushing project will begin in July, the Hamilton Avenue pipe replacement project is progressing with a few more weeks expected as well as with the Greenville paving. b) Emergency Management: Chief Tracy Montoya reported on behalf of both Emergency Management and Norwich Fire Department. Chief Montoya stated two recruits graduated from the academy on the 23rd of May and were sworn in the following day then started shifts shortly after. Chief Montoya stated oral boards were held for 59 candidates and there are plans to conduct Chief’s interviews in the near future. Chief Montoya reported NFD responded to 211 incidents along with providing mutual aid. Chief Montoya stated the new marine unit was formally dedicated that past Saturday and they will continue training on operations and systems however the boat is fully in service. Chief Montoya stated the new Battalion-1 vehicle is in service with plans to outfit the old Battalion as a Service truck and then retire the current service truck. Chief Montoya stated NFD is still searching for a Fire Marshal vehicle and are using a DTS vehicle in the meantime as they were unable to secure a vehicle from the Police Department due to funding on the NPD end. Chief Montoya stated Truck 2 is estimated to be out of service for a month due to a hydraulic issue and NFD critical needs include the Fire Marshal vehicle. Chief Montoya reported upcoming needs for Emergency Management include building efficiency and electrical upgrades as part of their ongoing audit from NPU. c) American Ambulance: None. d) Norwich Police Department: Captain Jim Veiga reported a routine month for May with approximately 3,700 calls and 132 arrests. Captain Veiga stated the body and cruiser camera project is underway with some cruiser cams already installed. Captain Veiga discussed the power outage that occurred at the precinct the previous day that led to their generator not immediately turning on which was found to be caused by their transfer switch that will need to get considered for replacement in next year’s budget. Barry Ellison of NPU stated he will get on top of trying to see if anything can be fixed in the meantime. Captain Veiga added the outgage brought to light some deficiencies in the power system as well as revising their master key system as they card access is not available during an outage. Captain Veiga reported NPD has received two internal applications for Deputy Chief and they have conducted interviews that are under review. Alderman DeLucia asked if when they test the generator and transmitter switch in the future if there are plans to develop protocol in case of problems moving forward. Captain Veiga responded that there was and there is also plans to have hard copies of generator instructions on file as well as in the computer system in case of outages. e) Firehouse Status Updates:  Taftville: Chief Timothy Jencks reported Taftville had 63 calls the past month and provided mutual aid to several partners along with membership compling 403 man hours of training overall. Chief Jencks stated the Sunday members of dive team did a detail for the Coast Guard and they’re anticipating on being deployed for SailFest for water safety measures. Chief Jencks said regarding the apparatus there has been mostly minor occurrences with exception of the Rescue which is aging. Chief Jencks stated he has been speaking the Mayor and other officials to find the best option to find funding for an engineer to develop a design for the firehouse improvements and parking spaces. Chief Jencks reminded everyone of Taftville Firehouse’s breakfast coming up that Sunday. East Great Plain: Captain Jay Coleman reported EGP has 62 calls in the last month and conducted regular training. Captain Coleman stated they received a couple new members and had routine maintenance for all apparatus except one that had a stay in the garage. Catapin Coleman said an unexpected repair was a crack in the station’s furnace however it is under warranty so their only cost will be to NPU for the labor. Occum: Chief Carroll Spaulding reported Occum is at 33 members with one new member having been voted in the night before and they are awaiting on physicals as the doctor’s office that is normally used is backed up until August. Chief Spaulding said he discussed with Chief Montoya regarding going to a different facility such as Pequot Medical or another that can perform a firefighter exam. Chief Spaulding stated Occum may finish the year in the red financially as he has discovered more unpaid bills. Chief Spaulding reported Occum responded to 77 calls in the past month along with mutual aid and seven motor vehicle accidents on Interstate 395N. Chief Spaulding stated Engine 41 was down for three days the week before for routine maintenance and front end work. Chief Spaulding reminded the departments of the upcoming road closings and Scotland Road and Baltic Road and that they have a pasta dinner coming up on July 13th from 5PM to 6:30PM. Yantic: Chief Frank Blanchard reported Yantic is currently at 60 members and all apparatus are in service besides Squad 36 which has been with Fleet Maintenance for three months now who are doing all they can to get parts for it but the delay is causing Yantic to put roughly 40 extra calls a month on Squad 3. Chief Blanchard stated he has listed in the budget for the past few years but now they are left with no spares for their Kenwood portable radios which received their end-of-life date years ago. Chief Blanchard said he would be listing it in the budget for the upcoming year but stressed that the issue must be addressed as if Yantic now loses a radio they will have an empty spot. Laurel Hill: None. Norwich: See Emergency Management update. VII. Other:  a) IMC Bridge Update: Moved to next month’s agenda. VIII. Future Agenda Items: a) IMC Bridge b) Norwich Police MRAP c) Cascade System for Laurel Hill d) Parking Commission Issues IX. Adjournment: Upon a motion by Alderman Nash, seconded by Alderman DeLucia, the meeting was unanimously adjourned at 7:34 pm Respectfully Submitted, Katherine Rose