City Council Study Meeting - ARCHIVED

SOUTH JORDAN CITY CITY COUNCIL STUDY MEETING February 7, 2023 Present: Council Member Tamara Zander, Council Member Patrick Harris, Council Member Don Shelton, Council Member Brad Marlor, Council Member Jason McGuire, City Manager Gary Whatcott, Deputy City Manager Dustin Lewis, CFO Sunil Naidu, Director of Strategy & Budget Don Tingey, Director of Commerce Brian Preece, Director of Public Works Jason Rasmussen, Director of Administrative Services Melinda Seager, City Attorney Ryan Loose, City Recorder Anna Crookston, GIS Coordinator Matt Jarman, Senior IS Tech Phill Brown, IS Specialist Ken Roberts, Director of Planning Steven Schaefermeyer, Deputy City Engineer Jeremy Nielson, Fire Chief Chris Dawson, Police Chief Jeff Carr, Associate Director of Recreation Jacob Druce, Meeting Transcriptionist Diana Baun, HR Director Theresa Cook, Communications Manager Rachael Van Cleave, Planning Commission Chair Michele Hollist Absent: Mayor Dawn Ramsey Others: Sam Bishop 4:51 PM STUDY MEETING A. Welcome, Roll Call, and Introduction: By Mayor Pro Tempore Patrick Harris. Council Member Marlor made a motion to nominate Council Member Harris as Mayor Pro Tempore for tonight until Mayor Ramsey returns. Council Member McGuire seconded the nomination; vote was unanimous. Mayor Pro Tempore Patrick Harris welcomed everyone present and introduced the meeting. He excused Mayor Dawn Ramsey who is currently traveling and unable to attend the meeting. B. Invocation: By Council Member Don Shelton Council Member Shelton offered the invocation. C. Mayor and Council Coordination Council Member Shelton reminded the council members of the morning report from the legislators Saturday, February 11, 2023 at 8:00 a.m. Mayor Pro Tempore Harris asked staff to discuss the impact of the extra snow this year and the resulting potholes. Deputy City Manager Dustin Lewis said that when we have a lot of moisture and freezing temperatures it tends to break the roads up more than usual, and crews spend their time in-between South Jordan City 2 City Council Study Meeting February 7, 2023 storms fixing potholes. Some of it can be done with cold patch, but it depends on the days that the plant creating the hot mix has materials available. When they can get the hot mix they go out and fix as many as they can. Director of Public Works Jason Rasmussen reinforced that the frequent snow storms with freezing and thawing finds those cracks and creates more potholes. One of the limitations has been the asphalt plant, as they haven’t been making hot mix as often as they’d like. Hot mix asphalt is the stuff that stays, otherwise when they use the cold patch it usually breaks out during the next snow storm; it is only a temporary fix, or a band-aid. He has spoken with other public works departments and they are experiencing the same issues with not being able to get the right asphalt for winter. However, his department has made some progress, and they are keeping a list of the current potholes that need repair. When they get the hot mix they get both trucks going and fill as many as they can. The plant has only been making the mix about once a week, so that has left them with only one day a week to be able to work on that. Manager Lewis mentioned a story done last month with KSL News and our Communications Manager Rachael Van Cleave, highlighting potholes around the valley and pointing to South Jordan as one of the cities that was aggressively out there filling potholes and actually doing a good job at it. Council Member Zander asked to confirm that our main artery roads like 10600 South and 11400 South are state roads, and asked who does those repairs. Director Rasmussen said they are state roads, and the state maintains those. Much of those roads are concrete, so there are less repairs needed, but west of Bangerter are our roads and we maintain those. When the city sees things that need repair on the state roads staff alerts them, but their response time isn’t great. He discussed specific locations with the council where there are issues on the state roads and shared what he knew regarding progress. D. Discussion/Review of Regular Council Meeting Action Item - Resolution R2023-09, Authorizing the Mayor to enter into an Interlocal Cooperation Agreement with Salt Lake Ctiy for 2022-2028 UPDES Media Campaign Cost Sharing. Manager Lewis shared that the city is required under UPDS to do certain things to educate the public about storm water. With those requirements there are two options, one is to do it on our own, and the other is to join with the storm water coalition and pool resources. We will pay our portion, which will go to the team putting that together. That option ends up being more fiscally responsible with city funds to meet the federal and state mandates for storm water education. South Jordan City 3 City Council Study Meeting February 7, 2023 Public Hearing Items - Resolution R2023-08, Amending the Future Land Use Plan Map. - Zoning Ordinance 2023-02-Z, Rezoning property located at 10828 South 1055 West. - Ordinance 2023-02, Adopting an amended and updated Impact Fee for Water and Transportation within the “Last Hold Out” properties. - Ordinance 2023-03, Adopting an amended and updated Impact Fee for Water and Transportation within the “Lark Meadows” properties. Manager Lewis noted that the first two items are in the area around 1055 West, and we will probably see some of the same residents from the recent meeting on the Rise Development. Director of Strategy & Budget, Don Tingey has been working closely with Lewis Young on the impact fees that need to be charged on some properties on the west side, he and Fred Philpot will be presenting those numbers. E. Discussion Item: E.1. Interfacility Transport discussion (By Fire Chief Chris Dawson). Fire Chief Chris Dawson reviewed his prepared presentation (Attachment A). Council Member Zander asked if the rise in transports was due to our faster population growth, or due to our percentage of calls per population going up. Chief Dawson answered that it was a combination of things. They tried to narrow that down, but they haven’t seen any particular area of calls that has jumped; everything has increased proportionally. He mentioned that elderly care facilities has had a pretty big impact on that, and he also believes because Station 64 has opened they are just more available to handle the calls inside the city and relying less on mutual aid. He continued reviewing Attachment A. Council Member Marlor asked how much of that growth is outside of the city boundaries. Chief Dawson referenced Attachment A and showed where the number of calls just inside South Jordan is listed, noting the medics running mutual aid calls outside of the city, along with the ones inside the city. Mayor Pro Tempore Harris asked if all the EMTs do IFTs. Chief Dawson responded yes, everybody rotates through them. He continued reviewing Attachment A. Mayor Pro Tempore Harris asked if they are having to decline IFTs due to the high volumes. Chief Dawson responded yes, they are having to refuse transfers and call Gold Cross to take those transfers. Mayor Pro Tempore Harris asked what the total revenue would be if they weren’t having to give up those opportunities for transfer due to volume. South Jordan City 4 City Council Study Meeting February 7, 2023 Chief Dawson responded that an average of 1.5 additional transports per day would pay for everything being suggested, at more than 100% of the cost. He doesn’t know what the number is, but he is confident it would be substantial. He continued reviewing Attachment A. Council Member McGuire asked what keeps a company like Gold Cross from coming in and trying to take this market over if it’s so profitable. Chief Dawson responded that it’s because we hold the license for it. Our fire department is the only one in Salt Lake County that actually holds a license to do this, so another company can’t by law come in. We have a contract with Gold Cross to be used as back up, and they are in the works of signing a contract to back them up on the flip side. City Manager Gary Whatcott added that the ambulance program in the State of Utah isn’t a free enterprise system, it is a monopolistic system done by licensing based on geographic boundary. Every license has a boundary with a clear indication of what services can be provided within that boundary. Our license includes not only emergency type calls normally seen in transporting, but we have an interfacility transport license as well which they fought 10 years for with Gold Cross. City Attorney Ryan Loose discussed a previous issue with Guardian Transport, and how hard the city fought them. That was all an effort to preserve the interfacility part of our license, as they were edging in on that and he knew they were breaking the law and infringing on the city’s license. Manager Whatcott noted that because of that fight, Guardian Transport realized they were in a space they couldn’t be and they have moved over to mental health transports. This program is meant to provide five ambulances from showing up at your traffic accident fighting to take you by offering a cheaper price or undercutting each other. Due to this program, the state regulates all the fees that can be charged, we don’t control the costs. Council Member Marlor asked if each city holds a license for this. Manager Whatcott responded that each license is very specific in terms of the area and what they are allowed to do, and the reason we hold the license we do is because Gold Cross had no infrastructure in the city at any point and the city proved that through a court process that granted the license. Chief Dawson reiterated that Gold Cross has approached him to work out a mutual aid agreement, as they are typically unavailable to handle calls in this area of the valley and that is another advantage for us, as he has all the confidence that we would be able to pick up those additional 1.5 transports daily to more than cover the costs of this EMS program. Manager Whatcott added that the helicopters are being removed from Salt Lake County, they hardly ever fly within the county. The actual helicopters are stationed outside of the county due to the proximity of trauma centers, however the critical care ambulance program our city is working on is a piece that fulfills that need on the ground. Chief Dawson said if they need to call a helicopter they are typically waiting 20 -30 minutes on a good day for that transport, and with recent medical centers opening locally it’s just faster to go via ground transport. South Jordan City 5 City Council Study Meeting February 7, 2023 Manager Whatcott added that another benefit to this is it isn’t taxpayer money, it all comes from third parties. Also, our contractual arrangement with the University of Utah is that they are the payer, we are not going through an insurance provider. Our collection rates, even with Medicaid and Medicare, on the emergency side of the business are very different from these transports. We are being paid up front cash, and it has saved our taxpayers millions in just fire equipment over the life of this program alone that we’ve paid for. Council Member Zander asked, if this is approved how many additional transports our crews could facilitate per day. Chief Dawson said it depends on the open spots they are filling, but it’s not unusual for their crews to do 21 transports in a day. That means that any single unit could do 6-8 transfers a day without much difficulty. Some of the savings the city will see with this program are with the Type 1 ambulance which is about half the price to procure, which would cost an estimate of about $8,400 to run. Just in savings alone, taking the pressure and mileage off the other ambulances will save $7,420 alone; that leaves the net cost under $1,000 a year to run this ambulance. He continued reviewing Attachment A. Manager Whatcott noted they would really like to get started on this program if the council doesn’t have any concerns, as it takes time to get the vehicles and get them geared up. They would like to try to get this ready to run by July 1, 2024. Council Member Shelton asked if this would be part of a budget. Manager Whatcott said it could be added in, but it’s just cash that’s currently sitting there in a special fund. CFO Naidu said this is in the budget as part of the Capital Improvement Funds, but it’s not labeled specifically as an enterprise fund. Council Member Shelton asked if anyone had the current fund balance since it is being tracked. CFO Naidu replied that he believes it is close to $2 million or more. Chief Dawson said his goal is to provide the best care possible to our residents, and we are uniquely positioned to do that with the development of this program and the critical care program. He is very confident that the EMS system is going to change and evolve to look very different in 5-10 years and this puts us in a position to take advantage of that and be ready to go. Council Member McGuire asked if this program would run out of Station 64. Chief Dawson responded yes. Council Member McGuire asked as the Downtown Daybreak area grows, will that station still be able to serve this program plus the additional battalion the station was designed for. South Jordan City 6 City Council Study Meeting February 7, 2023 Chief Dawson responded yes, that everything being looked at with the future addition of Station 65 and potential changes at Station 62 and 64, allow for this program with no significant changes to house this program. Council Member Marlor asked if the green light is given tonight, would this be brought back for an official vote from the council in the future. Manager Lewis said he wanted to bring something back after the last discussion where the council asked what could be done to prevent things from impacting service levels. This was the lowest hanging fruit of all the options, and if the council gives the nod he can tell Chief Dawson to start tomorrow morning and make this happen with an anticipated program start date of July 1. Manager Whatcott noted that in the upcoming budget year there would be changes to approve in terms of the required full time employee positions. Council Member Marlor asked if there is any talk in the legislative arena regarding any changes that would affect this opportunity. Attorney Loose discussed someone who was trying to ruin this whole system so he could run things the way he wanted, but that failed because of our city and many other entities. This year there was a little talk and a few things on the edges, but nothing significant. By next year or the year after if they chose to do anything regarding removing the licenses, it would actually probably work to our advantage if we wanted to run a full scale program because we would already be set up and ready to go. Manager Lewis mentioned a piece of legislation that would change the retirement for the paramedic only, which would significantly help us in the recruiting of people to fill the necessary full time positions. It only applies to those working in the government sector that provide this kind of medical service, and it might be attractive to individuals who don’t currently work for a local government to jump across and work here. Manager Whatcott said there are a number of rural towns whose medics are unable to be in the state retirement system as a public safety employee, and there is a bill to change that for paramedics/EMTs only that are not certified firefighters. This bill now allows them to be in the firefighter retirement system as proposed. Mayor Pro Tempore Harris asked what happens if a later analysis justifies adding another vehicle, which requires the hiring of six additional paramedics. Manager Whatcott said it could be brought back as a discussion and added, even if they needed to formally amend the budget that could be done at any time. Manager Lewis noted that this also adds another tool to the city’s toolbox, for instance when we are required to provide an ambulance at a Bingham High Football Game or a standby ambulance at a concert at the equestrian center, Summerfest or the Farmer’s Market. This would allow the city to provide that service without taking an ambulance out of service for the event. South Jordan City 7 City Council Study Meeting February 7, 2023 Council Member Zander asked if a large sports venue in the city would require an ambulance for their events. Manager Lewis said it depends on the type of activities, it might be required and we would be available for hire. The council members all agreed that they were supportive of this proposed program. Council Member Zander motioned to move from the City Council Study Meeting to Executive Closed Session. Council Member Shelton seconded the motion; vote was unanimous in favor. RECESS CITY COUNCIL STUDY MEETING AND MOVE TO EXECUTIVE CLOSED SESSION F. Executive Closed Session F.1. Discuss pending or reasonably imminent litigation. ADJOURN EXECUTIVE CLOSED SESSION AND RETURN TO CITY COUNCIL STUDY MEETING Council Member Marlor motioned to adjourn the Executive Closed Session and return to the City Council Study Meeting. Council Member McGuire seconded the motion; vote was unanimous in favor. ADJOURNMENT Council Member McGuire motioned to adjourn the February 7, 2023 City Council Study Meeting. Council Member Shelton seconded the motion; vote was unanimous in favor. The February 7, 2023 City Council Study meeting adjourned at 6:05 p.m. This is a true and correct copy of the February 7, 2023 City Council Study Meeting Minutes, which were approved on February 21, 2023. South Jordan City Recorder  Attachment A IFT Program Expansion Opportunities and Solutions Current Situation • Interfacility transfer calls from the Daybreak Health Center have increased at an unexpected rate and have now exceeded the anticipated high water mark for IFTs from that facility. • The Fire Department is also seeing an additional increase in 911 calls and 911 ambulance transports. • Call increases between 2021 and 2022: • 21.18% increase in 911 transports • 11.3% increase in IFTs • 14% increase in total calls for service in 2022 (6966) • Total calls for service and numbers of transports increased in 2022 to a level far beyond anticipated growth.  Projected vs. Actual Growth 9000 Trends in Calls for Service 112891 120000 109568 106246 8000 102924 99602 Station 64 Opened 96280 100000 92957 7000 89365 86313 Station 63 Opened 77485 6000 73666 80000 70905 71732 66590 5000 61711 57301 60000 8323 4000 8033 7754 7225 7485 6966 6731 6974 6498 3000 6054 40000 5574 5774 5420 4911 4380 2000 3984 3651 3688 20000 1000 1816 1575 1620 1650 1680 1700 1710 1750 1775 1484 1110 1139 260 601 693 670 661 795 0 0 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 Interfacility Transfers Total Calls for Service Current Challenges • Due to the rapid increase in calls for service, coupled by the extended timeframe needed to complete Interfacility Transfers (125 min. average), ambulance crewmembers’ workload has increased significantly. This include at least one- third of the IFT calls being handled between 10:00 PM and 6:00 AM. • The large number of IFTs being handled is resulting in a decrease in time our ambulances are in the City and available to respond to 911 calls. • Crews are reporting an increase in overall fatigue and stress related to IFTs, resulting in a decrease in job satisfaction. Over time this is likely to impact recruitment and retention. Desired Intent • We would like to find an appropriate balance of personnel and transport units that will allow the Department to fulfill the majority of IFT requests while still maintaining available units in the City for 911 calls for service. • We desire to increase the overall sense of employee satisfaction and decrease reported stress and fatigue that is currently present in the workforce. • Appropriately maintain/increase IFT revenue for the City to augment Department operations and offset expenses related to the significant growth being experienced in the City. • Maintain/improve recruitment and retention through our innovative programs and specialized service to our community. Possible Solutions Possible Solutions – Contract with Private Ambulance • Contract with private ambulance to handle all or a larger portion of IFTs • This is an unfavorable solution as it would decrease or eliminate a significant funding source for the City and Fire Department operations. • Decreased funding will negatively impact the Fire Department fleet, equipment, ability to innovate within an expanding EMS/Medical system, as well as hindering the Department’s anticipated expansion timeline. • Service delivery to patients and the Daybreak Health Center will likely decrease. Possible Solutions – IFT Bonus Program • Provide a per IFT bonus for the transporting crewmembers of $50/per IFT. • While this is likely to change crewmember perception of IFTs in the short term, it is unknown how long this may be viewed as a sufficient incentive to ameliorate long-term concerns regarding IFTs among employees. • This solution has no effect on the call per employee ratio and the resultant stress and fatigue that is being experienced by crewmembers. • While this is the least costly potential solution, it is solely designed to impact employee perception regarding IFTs, but does not increase the Department’s capabilities to handle the increase in calls currently being experienced. • Approximate annual cost: ~$108,000.00. Possible Solutions – Overtime Staffing • Add one additional transport unit to the system using overtime pay for current full-time employees. • The additional transport unit will decrease the call per employee ratio. • The overtime opportunity is viewed as being a significant incentive for recruitment and retention. • This solution would still allow some cost savings in additional fleet costs through the purchase of a van-style ambulance. This unit would be “first out” on all IFTs, which would take mileage and pressure off of current medic units. • This would give a greater opportunity to maintain ambulances in the City to respond to 911 calls. • This is the costliest solution to implement. • Approximate annual cost: $800,000 - $950,000 annually. Preferred Solution Medical Only Unit Addition • Add a “Medical Only” transport unit to the system. • A minimum of six FTEs would need to be hired to staff this transport unit. • Some overtime may be needed to cover in cases of vacation/sick leave. • Cost to outfit “medical only” personnel would be significantly less than fire personnel. • Fleet costs for procurement, maintenance, and vehicle use would decrease significantly. • This unit would be “first out” on all IFTs, which would take mileage and pressure off of current medic units. • This solution would require an up front investment in equipment and personnel. Program Expansion Needs • Six Paramedic only FTEs. • Modest amount of overtime to cover vacation and sick leave. • One program manager to be added to Fire Department Administration. • At least one Type 2 ambulance and supporting medical equipment. Oversight and Administration • Our administrative duties would be split between two Division Chiefs (BC level). • Medical Division Chief • EMS Program oversight • Records Management • IFT Program administration • Critical Care Program oversight • Medical training and certification • Hospital representative and care facility liaison • Special events and community medical education/CPR • Administrative Division Chief • Fire training and certifications • Fire training facility management* • Special Operations Programs – Heavy Rescue and Hazmat • Community outreach and public education/Fire Prevention • Department Logistics • Grant writing and administration • Special Projects Potential Return on Investment IFT Collection Per Transport 1800 1600 1400 1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0 2018-19 2019-20 2020-21 2021-22 2022-23*  IFT Revenue Growth IFT Transport Revenue 2022-23* 2021-22 2020-21 2019-20 2018-19 2017-18 2016-17 2015-16 2014-15 2013-14 2012-13 2011-12 Net Revenue Gross Revenue Program Savings • The acquisition of a Type 2 ambulance is approximately half the cost of a Type 1 ambulance. • Less storage space is required for non-fire personnel. • Expected fuel and maintenance costs for a Type 2 ambulance are anticipated to be $8400.00, however this single addition is expected to decrease current ambulance fuel and maintenance costs by at least $7420.00. • Net annual cost is expected to be only ~$980.00. • Significant savings are realized in acquisition, fuel, and preventative maintenance. • Non-fire personnel onboarding costs will be significantly less than for firefighters. Program Cost Recapture • Based upon current collection rates, the increase in collections experienced this year alone (FY 2022-23) will more than pay for the anticipated costs of adding 7 FTEs to the Interfacility Transport Program. • By adding an average of 1.5 transports daily, annual collections will more than pay for the addition of 7 FTEs, separate from the increase experienced this fiscal year alone. • By adding another 1 transport daily, a second unit consisting of 6 FTEs could be funded, which is a consideration for future expansion. Future Growth Opportunities • Changes in Daybreak Health Center’s use of AirMed is likely to increase Critical Care Paramedic transports. • Expected contract with Gold Cross will expand our opportunities outside of South Jordan municipal boundaries, especially for Critical Care Paramedic transports. • Options for additional units include: • Adding a second Medical Only IFT unit. • Same implementation costs, minus supervisor costs. • Adding a peak time IFT vehicle manned with overtime opportunities for full-time employees. • Data driven approach to capture additional calls when demand exists. Trial option without significant ongoing commitment. Program Expansion Benefits • Ambulances will be more available within the City to respond to 911 calls for service, resulting in increased public safety. • We will achieve a more balanced workload for our ambulance crewmembers, which will result in decreased concerns of stress and fatigue and will increase job satisfaction. • We will be able to maintain or increase revenue to the City to offset the increased costs being experienced due to inflation as well as ongoing and expected growth. • Revenue will significantly offset the costs of Fire Department vehicles, equipment, and potential infrastructure costs for a future training facility and Fire Station addition/replacement. Future Growth Potential • Our current IFT program has given us some unique opportunities to innovate and operate outside of industry norms as we work to become an industry leader. • An additional unit(s) will allow us to more quickly develop our Critical Care Paramedic Program, which will further increase our revenue potential and will add second-to-none service capabilities to our community. • As the EMS system in Utah continues to evolve, South Jordan will be poised to take advantage of new opportunities and more fully develop a stand-alone EMS Division with increased service capabilities in the future.