LAWRENCE-DOUGLAS COUNTY FIRE AND MEDICAL
STATION 5 BACKGROUND PAPER
Introduction
Lawrence-Douglas County Fire and Medical currently operates four fire stations within the city limits (see attached map). Station No. 1 is located at Eighth and Vermont Streets. Station No. 2 is located on Harper just south of the Fair Grounds. Station No. 3 is located on Sixth Street just west of Kasold Drive and Station No. 4 is on Stonebarn Terrace, south of Clinton Parkway on Lawrence Avenue. In addition, we staff a station in Baldwin City with a medic unit. The last additional fire station built was Station No. 4 in 1982, to accommodate the growth to the southwest. The vacated station on Haskell Ave at Moodie Road has been converted to a Training/Maintenance Facility.
Background
The need for both the recently completed Station No. 2 relocation and the proposed Station No. 5/Administration and Station No. 4 relocation is outlined in the 1996 Public Safety Report. The Fire Department developed the Report as a planning tool for fire protection services to address the rapid growth the City has been experiencing. The Report proposed a plan that relocates Stations No. 2 and 4 and adds Station No. 5 with Administration. This plan re-distributes our facilities to match services with the City’s growth. If Station No. 2 and 4 are not relocated, two additional stations would need to be built to service growth and maintain appropriate response times. Per the attached, Station No. 5/Administration and Station No. 4 relocation are listed as projects in the Capital Improvement Plan.
Following the plan presented in the Report includes the following steps:
Step 1: Station Two – Relocation
Status – Completed April, 2002
Station Two was relocated south and east of its present location to 2128 Harper Street to cover the east/southeast area of the city. Station Two houses a full complement of living and sleeping quarters, kitchen, shower and locker facilities, office and radio area, fitness room, appropriate storage space, three apparatus bays and parking. The cost of constructing this facility was $1,515,044. Equipment housed at this Station consists of a quint (combination pumper/ladder) and a medic unit.
Step 2: Station Five and Administration – Construction Plan as part of the CIP
Status - Design 2004, Construction 2005
To provide quick responding, effective fire protection services to the center of the City, Station No. 5 needs to be constructed at 19th Street and Stewart Ave. The KU Endowment Association, which owns the property, has agreed to lease property at the NW corner of 19th and Stewart to the City for Station No. 5 and Administration offices at a nominal cost, if the City agrees to construct a fire station. Station No. 5 would be considered the City’s “central” station, as it would be centrally located to provide support to the other four stations.
As the “central” station providing primary coverage of Kansas University, the central portion of the City and support to the other four stations, an engine and a ladder would be re-assigned to Station No. 5 from Station No. 1. In addition, a medic unit and hazardous materials unit will also be housed in this station. Station No. 5 will house a full complement of living and sleeping quarters, kitchen, shower and locker facilities, office and radio area, fitness room, appropriate storage space, four apparatus bays and parking. This plan requires the purchase of a Quint to be located at Station No. 1.
Step 3: Station Four – Relocation Plan as part of the current CIP
Status – Design 2004, Construction 2006
Station No. 4 would be relocated west and slightly north of its present location to a new station at 20th Street and Wakarusa Drive to cover the west area of the city. The City Utilities Department currently owns and operates a water treatment plant west of Wakarusa Drive, between Turnberry Drive and Clinton Parkway. A one-acre section of the property, fronting Wakarusa Drive, has been identified for construction of a fire station. Station No. 4 will house a full complement of living and sleeping quarters, kitchen, shower and locker facilities, office and radio area, fitness room, appropriate storage space, three apparatus bays and parking. A quint and medic unit would be located in this station. Note – it is intended that the design for Station No. 2 (completed in 2002) will be replicated for Station No. 4 at this site.
Step 4: Station One – Remodel Plan as part of the current CIP
Status - Design 2007, Construction 2008
Station No. 1 would need to be equipped with a quint unit and a medic unit to replace the engine and ladder unit re-assigned to Station No. 5. This would complete the transition to the quint concept in that each of the four “outlying” stations each would be equipped with a quint unit, staffed with four personnel, and a medic unit staffed with two personnel.
A quint and medic unit, working in concert out of each of the four outlying stations, provides a much more flexible and efficient delivery of fire/ems services to the citizens of Lawrence. The extraordinary capabilities a quint provides can be more fully accessed with six personnel initially on scene. An interior attack team can be assigned to rescue and fire attack. At the same time, the medic personnel can be activating and positioning the aerial ladder to provide exposure control, external rescue capabilities, or roof ventilation as needed.
Staffing
With the engine and ladder at Station No. 1 being re-assigned to Station No. 5, the personnel assigned to Station No. 1 would also be assigned to Station No. 5. This would require the addition of eighteen Firefighters, six per shift, to staff Quint One and Medic One. We plan on reducing staff on our current medic units from three to two personnel, which will allocate six personnel to offset the eighteen required full-time employees. An additional nine FTE positions would be required.
Facility Construction and Operational Costs
Attached is a breakdown of estimated construction and operational costs for the Station No. 5 project. Facility operational costs are projections made from averages of current facilities during FY 2003.
Administrative Offices
Centralizing administrative staff for all the department divisions under one common roof at Station Five will maximize efficiency of services and create a responsive customer service environment for the public. A lack of adequate space has forced the department to give up the training room at Station One in order to provide offices for administrative staff. Additionally, department staff now must conduct and coordinate daily business out of four remote locations.
Douglas County Commitment
The “Cooperative Agreement Concerning the Provisions of Emergency Medical Services in Douglas County” was entered into by both Douglas County and the City of Lawrence in December 1996. As a section of this agreement, Douglas County agrees to pay for costs associated with construction and operation of new facilities. (Section 5.a. County Financial Obligations.) “The County shall be responsible for 100% of the cost associated with building and maintaining buildings for medical (ambulance) purposes.”
Summary
The 1996 Public Safety Report recommended the relocation of two existing stations and the construction of one station (Station No. 5) to meet the response time, staffing and deployment issues pertaining to our current ISO class. This plan eliminated the need to construct two additional stations to meet these standards. This alternative configuration of fire stations will also provide excellent fire protection/EMS service coverage of current areas of Lawrence. As the City’s geographical area continues to grow, staff strives to provide the City Commission with appropriate information regarding the additional resources that will be required to service this continuous growth.
Attachments: Attachment A Estimated One-Time Costs
Attachment B Estimated Annual Operational/Personnel Costs
Attachment A
Estimated One-Time Costs
Station No. Five and Department Administrative Offices
● Facility Costs – Option 1
Estimated Construction Costs – Station No. 5 and Administrative Offices
(per Sabatini Architects/SFS Architects Inc.)
Project Budget
Construction $3,941,100
Land Acquisition $0
Project Contingency $292,500
Testing/Inspections, A/E Fees, Reimbursable $423,000
2% Art $78,800
Furnishings, Fixtures and Equipment $260,000
Total Construction Project Budget $4,995,400
City Contribution (74.36%) $3,714,580
County Contribution (25.64%) $1,280,820
Note - Estimated Construction Cost of Administrative Offices is $711,672
● Facility Costs – Option 2
Estimated Construction Costs – Station No. 5 Only
(per Sabatini Architects/SFS Architects Inc.)
Construction $3,390,473
Land Acquisition $0
Project Contingency $258,440
Testing/Inspections, A/E Fees, Reimbursable $334,153
2% Art $74,983
Furnishings, Fixtures and Equipment $230,351
Total Construction Project Budget $4,283,728
City Contribution (74.36%) $3,185,380
County Contribution (25.64%) $1,098,347
● Apparatus Costs – Quint $525,000
Historically, the Equipment Reserve Fund have been utilized as the method of payment for large vehicle purchases. We have not bonded a fire truck in the last 13 years or longer. Capital expenditures specifically designated for fire are funded 100% by the city.
● Revenue Sources/Off Set Costs
With the construction of Station 5 we will be closing the Shift Commander’s station located at 1839 Massachusetts. This station was built in 1928 as a fire station, and was utilized as an ambulance station from 1968 through 1997, when it became Shift Commander’s station. Station No. 6 located at 225 Maine next to Lawrence Memorial Hospital would no longer be used by the department as an ambulance station. Per the terms of the City/County agreement, consultation between the two entities will take place regarding future use of the building. Some of that discussion will pertain to the existing deed restrictions for the property. A certain portion of the daily operational costs of Station 5 will be off set by these two facility closings.
In addition, there are two sources of (one time) revenue that we recommend be considered to reduce general obligation bond requirements. First is the sale of city property (current fire station housing shift commanders) at 1839 Mass. Second, the sale of undeveloped city property located on W 15th Street at the west city limits, which was previously earmarked for a public safety facility.
● Design and Construction Timeline
Anticipate 6 months to have documents ready for bidding.
Phase Duration
Schematic Design 5 weeks
Design Development 5 weeks
Construction Documents 16 weeks
Bidding 3 weeks
Construction Contract Approval 3 weeks
Mobilization 2 weeks
Construction 44-52 weeks
● Long Term Financing Costs of Building*
Ed Mullins has provided the following estimates: Annual Average Payment
Option 1 – Facility/Apparatus Costs for Station & Administrative Offices
10 year debt $463,136 = .687 mill
15 year debt $330,119 = .489 mill
20 year debt $310,828 = .461 mill
Option 2 – Facility/Apparatus Costs for Station Only
10 year debt $434,079 = .644 mill
15 year debt $323,790 = .480 mill
20 year debt $277,375 = .411 mill
Note: 1 mill = $674,353 (FY 2004)
*The debt levy impact of the debt payments is the estimated initial impact; this impact will likely decrease as future assessed valuations increase.
Attachment B
Estimated Annual Operational/Personnel Costs
Station No. Five and Department Administrative Offices
● Facility Costs – Calculated using an average of FY 2003 Station Number Two operating costs
Insurance –
Est. Annual Premium+ $ 4,112
+structural value = $4,995,400; premium estimated at $.0823/$100 value
Utilities –
Natural Gas* $13,100
Electric* $16,400
TELCO** No additional cost
*potential savings could be realized due to department no longer staffing/utilizing stations at 1839 Mass and 225 Maine
** cost currently incurred for telephone service at 1839 Mass. and 225 Maine will be transferred to Station Five
Equipment -
Station Supplies $2,160
Total Facility Costs $35,772
● Apparatus Costs – Annual operating cost of an additional quint
Vehicle Operational Costs Fuel $ 2,100
Maintenance $ 11,000(1st year under warranty)
Insurance $ 2,122
Total Apparatus Costs $ 15,222
● Personnel Costs – 9 FTE
|
|
Base Pay |
9 FTE |
|
Hourly Rate |
$11.0221 |
|
|
Annual Salary (A) |
$32,096.36 |
$288,867.24 |
|
Medicare (1.45%) |
$456.40 |
$4,188.57 |
|
Unemployment (0.2%) |
$64.19 |
$577.73 |
|
KPF (10.02%) |
$3,216.06 |
$28,944.50 |
|
Workers Compensation (.02%) |
$680.91 |
$6,128.20 |
|
Health Insurance (118.74 x 26) |
$3,087.36 |
$27,786.24 |
|
Life Insurance (1.38 x 26) |
$36.00 |
$324.00 |
|
Overtime – Average 2003 hours |
$1,037.00 |
$9,333.00 |
|
Uniform Allowance |
$125.00 |
$1,125.00 |
|
Safety Equipment (3yr replacement) |
$670.00 |
$6,030.00 |
|
Total Fringe Benefits (B) |
$9,381.92 |
$84,437.25 |
|
Total Compensation (A+B) |
$41,478.28 |
$373,304.49 |
|