This fiscal year the City Council approved the hiring of four full-time Fire Captain positions and three full-time Fire Engineer positions. The Council also approved a Cooperative Fire Services Agreement with the City of Arroyo Grande that went into effect on July 1, 2004.

Some of the operational benefits to be derived from this Cooperative Agreement are paid staffing on duty 24/7 in both communities; a single Fire Chief serving both agencies; a single Administrative/Fire Training Officer serving both agencies; continued support of a volunteer/reserve firefighter force; improved quality of response to emergencies; access to specialized skills and equipment by both departments; creation of pathways for future cost savings; a shared radio frequency for full interoperability; retention of identity and local control by each City; and improvement in the training programs of both departments under the leadership of the Administrative/Fire Training Officer.

Joint training was immediately implemented on a daily and weekly basis to ensure that both departments were familiar with each other’s training practices, equipment, and apparatus. As this newsletter goes to print, recruitment of new volunteer/reserve personnel was completed and joint firefighter training is being provided for seventeen new recruits.

As part of this Cooperative Agreement, a Fire Oversight Committee - consisting of one member from each City Council, the City Managers of each jurisdiction, and the Fire Chief - has been meeting to address and resolve any ongoing issues involved during this implementation period.

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