CAPITAL OUTLAY COMMITTEE November 5, 2015

Transcription

1 MINUTES CAPITAL OUTLAY COMMITTEE November 5, 2015 APPROVED The meeting of the Capital Outlay Committee was called to order in the Town Hearing Room at Sharon Community Center at 7:01 pm by Chair Paul Linehan. Members Present: Chair: Board of Selectmen: Finance Committee: School Committee: Planning Board: Others Present: Town Administrator: Finance Director: IT Director: Police Chief: Police Lieutenant: Fire Chief: Paul Linehan Walter Joe Roach Gordon Gladstone and Alex Korin Katie Currel-Dykeman Robert Maidman and Louis Modestino Frederic E. Turkington, Jr. (Ex-Officio) Cynthia Doherty (Ex-Officio) Donald Hillegass Tilden Kaufman John Ford James Wright Administrative Items Chair Paul Linehan requested that the Capital Outlay Committee members introduce themselves. MOTION: (Gladstone-Roach) To approve the Regular Session Minutes of October 22, 2015 VOTED: (6-0-1) PASSES (Alex Korin abstaining) Police Department FY'17 Requests - 2 Vehicles $ 60,000 CAD/RMS System $ 210,000 FY'17 Total $ 270,000 Police Chief Tilden Kaufman was present to discuss the department s fiscal year 2017 Capital Requests. Paul Linehan asked Chief Kaufman to recap the status of existing capital accounts. He explained that funds from previous capital cycles will allow him to purchase 3 vehicles, 1 is currently on order. Chief Kaufman said moving forward he would like to have two new vehicles cycled in each year due to significant wear and tear of 24/7 operation. Fred Turkington agreed. Mr. Turkington also noted that last year s request of $120,000 was reduced and part of the request was deferred to cash for FY17. Chief Kaufman noted that $3,800 left over from the FY 16 finger print scanner request will be retained for potential warranty expenses. Request: 2 Vehicles Cost: $60,000 The current request of $60,000 combined with $20,000 remaining in the cruiser account will allow the Chief to purchase 2 cruisers which cost approximately $40,000 per vehicle. Chief Kaufman noted that cruisers to be replaced are checked over by DPW before they are traded in or cycled to another department. The Fire Department will be taking an old cruiser to use for administrative purposes. Gordon Gladstone and Robert Maidman would like the Council on Aging to be considered when vehicles are being redistributed. Fred Turkington noted the town will check the state bid list and consider leasing when appropriate for any new vehicle purchases. Page 1 of 5

2 Request: CAD/RMS System Cost: $210,000 Chief Kaufman explained the CAD/RMS system is a necessary update to a 22 year-old outdated system. The current system, Microsystems, is unable to keep up with today s needs. A quote from Tritech has been distributed to the Committee outlining the scope of work and services for the IMC system. The $210,000 request includes the equipment and installation requirements of the new system, as well as file conversion from the old system, training and maintenance agreement. Chief Kaufman noted that over 250 area Police Departments in Massachusetts, including the surrounding towns, currently use the IMC system. It will give the department the ability to instantly share information between towns and save officers time by backfilling information as it is being typed, as most reports are repetitive in nature. The upgrade will also allow the Fire Department to house their records, which are currently stored in Holbrook. The Fire Department currently has remote access to the records, but Chief Wright explained that the connection to them can easily be lost. There is a difference in price between the quote and the request amount, Gordon Gladstone asked for clarification. IT Director Donald Hillegass explained that the quote does not include a new server which will cost approximately $6,000-$10,000. He believes the new server should last 5-10 years, noting the most up-to-date version will be purchased. The maintenance agreement in the quote is for the first year, requiring the cost in the out years to become a budget expense. Lt. Ford pointed out that it will likely cost less than the annual maintenance agreement on the current system. Chief Kaufman plans to designate specific staff trainers to help train the other staff. Chairman Linehan requested Chief Kaufman have a representative from Tritech to attend a future Capital Outlay meeting. Fire Department FY'17 Requests - Ladder Truck $ 950,000 Ambulance Cot Restraint System $ 27,000 Replace Radio Fire Alarm System $ 60,000 Radio Receiver Site Rt 1 (microwave hub) $ 30,000 FY'17 Total $ 1,067,000 Fire Chief James Wright presented the department s Capital Outlay requests for FY 17. Chairman Paul Linehan asked Chief Wright to provide a status update of previous capital projects. Chief Wright submitted the following: FIRE DEPARTMENT FY-16 CAPITAL PROJECT STATUS Total Per Item Per Item Total Funded: Budgeted Expended Expended: Balance FY-13 (Committed) FY-13/14 Capital Projects: SCBA Radio Interface (FY-13) $38, $38, $38, $38, $0.00 FY-14 Station Heating $40,000 $36, Station-Twn Hall Gen/Sta Elect. $340,000 $100,000 $80, $306, $33, Public Safety Study $200,000 $189, FY-15 Defibrillator $32,000 $32, $0.00 Page 2 of 5

3 Deputy Car $45,000 $44, $ Building Improvements $50,000 $0.00 $50, Portables $80, $80, $80, $80, $0.00 FY-16 Ambulance $275,000 $275,000 ($274,713.74) $5, $269, Utility Pickup $50,000 $50,000 ($48,310.00) $0.00 $50, Chief Wright explained that $ in funds from the purchase of the Deputy s car will be returned. The FY 14 station heating line item and the FY 15 building improvements line item for the roof have not been expended pending the results of the building study being performed. He noted that very little has been spent for FY 16 but is very obligated with the brush truck on order and ambulance anticipated for March. Chief Wright submitted his Capital Requests for FY 17 as follows: Request: Ladder Truck Cost: $950,000 Chief Wright noted that if this request continues to be pushed out to other capital cycles it will soon catch up to a request for a new pumper truck which is anticipated for FY 19. He explained that the purchase of a 100 ariel ladder truck is not so much for the height as the reach. The truck is usually staged away from a building and may need to reach a chimney or other high point from a distance. He noted the new truck is stronger with a greater tip load when the apparatus is fully extended. It has safety features such as an alarm when there is too much weight or going to tip, lighted ladder, back up camera and inferred LEDS. The current ladder truck is a 1994 Pierce 105 foot aerial that began front line service for the Town of Sharon in December of One of the most important capital assets of the town and department is a fleet of reliable fire apparatus. Firefighters depend heavily on the performance capabilities of these vehicles when delivering emergency services to protect life, property, and the environment. In order to maximize firefighter capabilities and minimize their risk of injuries, it is imperative that fire apparatus be equipped with the latest safety features and operating capabilities. If these services are to be provided without interruption, fire apparatus must be maintained in superior operating condition and should be promptly replaced when adequate performance levels can no longer be assured. Replacing fire apparatus is a necessary, yet costly, expenditure of funds. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standard on automotive fire apparatus (NFPA 1901) recommends that all first line apparatus be replaced after 15 years with a maximum service life of 25 years: To maximize fire fighter capabilities and minimize risk of injuries, it is important that fire apparatus be equipped with the latest safety features and operating capabilities. In the last 10 to 15 years, much progress has been made in upgrading functional capabilities and improving the safety features of fire apparatus. Apparatus more than 15 years old might include only a few of the safety upgrades required by the recent editions of the NFPA fire department apparatus standards or the equivalent Underwriters Laboratories of Canada (ULC) standards. Because the changes, upgrades, and fine tuning to NFPA 1901 have been truly significant, especially in the area of safety, fire departments should seriously consider the value (or risk) to fire fighters of keeping fire apparatus more than 15 years old in first-line service. It is recommended that apparatus more than 15 years old that have been properly maintained and that are still in serviceable condition be placed in reserve status; be upgraded in accordance with NFPA 1912; and incorporate as many features as possible of the current fire apparatus standard (see Section D.3 ). This will ensure that, while the apparatus might not totally comply with the current editions of the automotive fire apparatus standards, many of the improvements and upgrades required by the current editions of the standards are available to the fire fighters who use the apparatus. Apparatus that were not manufactured to the applicable NFPA fire apparatus standards or that are over 25 years old should be replaced. Sharon Fire s ladder truck is nearing the end of its useful life and replacement is necessary. Replacement for this vehicle is a lengthy process. Developing the vehicle specifications and completing the public procurement process will take two or three months, review of the bids and award will take another month and building the truck will take nearly one year. Therefore approval of this purchase at the May 2016 Annual Town Meeting would result in Page 3 of 5

4 the town receiving the new ladder truck in the Fall of Our current ladder will have been in front line service for nearly 24 years. Request: Ambulance Cot Restraint System Cost: $27,000 Chief noted that the new ambulance from last Capital Cycle will be equipped with this restraint system and requests to bring their existing ambulance up to the new safety standard. This system keeps the patient in tact in the event of a rollover. This system would be installed in the department s 2010 Horton/International Ambulance. The Massachusetts Office of Emergency Medical Services issued Advisory on July 13, 2015 in regards to Updates to United States General Services Administration s Federal Specification for the Star of Life Ambulance, KKK-A- 1822F and Massachusetts Implementation Timeline. This requirement identifies the requirement for all new ambulances contracted for and constructed after July 1, 2015 must meet the new standard. This required us to add the additional safety equipment for the new ambulance being purchased this fiscal year. The primary change under this new standard is to incorporate crash test rated stretcher retention systems that meet SAE J3027 standards. This is a major safety upgrade from the current stretcher retention systems. This system comes at a significant expense as well as several outstanding benefits. The cost is $27,000 to add this system. The actual unit is $25K plus an additional $2K to retrofit our current stretchers reinforcement and mechanisms to work with this system. In addition to the rollover crash rating the Stryker system that works with our stretchers also loads the stretcher into the ambulance. It currently takes two firefighters to load a stretcher in the ambulance and one of them hold up one end of the stretcher and pushes the stretcher into the ambulance while the other firefighter guides the stretcher into the retention brackets. On some heavier patients it takes two firefighters on the end of the stretcher to lift and push it into the ambulance. This restraint and loading system is rated for up to 750 pounds and can be easily operated by one firefighter with minimal lifting or pushing required to load and secure the stretcher. Although it is not required to upgrade our 2010 Ambulance we believe this is a very important for patient safety, firefighter safety and injury prevention, and consistency among our equipment. Request: Replace Radio Fire Alarm System Cost: $60,000 Chief Wright would like the new fire alarm system installed in the new Public Safety Building. The installation will not require any modifications to the new building. There is no state funding available for this project. The current municipal radio fire alarm system was installed in 2005 and is a first generation system. This system monitors 79 municipal, business, and commercial properties in the Town. The current system is outdated and in desperate need of upgrade. The current system requires manual reset and transfer to the backup receiver and computer systems. The dual systems are required in case one of the systems goes down then the other will receive the alarm. The new system automatically transfers from the primary receiver to the secondary receiver if there is a problem. The current system frequently has failures and needs manual intervention to keep the system active. If a failure occurs when the fire station is empty because all firefighters are on calls or training, our dispatch will not receive notification of a fire alarm activation. The plan for the new system would be to install it in the new public safety building and disable the current system once the new system is active. If the Town chooses not to upgrade the system then we would recommend to the Board of Selectmen that the Town discontinue the municipal system and require properties to move to a commercial central station monitoring system at their expense. This would include nearly all the municipal and school buildings that are currently monitored by this system. We would maintain and monitor the current system for the transition period to central station monitoring. Request: Add Microwave Hub on Route 1 Cost: $58,000 - $25,000 = $33,000 Chief Wright explained that existing radio signals are marginal at best in the Route 1 area. They currently need to switch to a different channel to communicate and dispatch cannot hear the transmissions on that channel. Page 4 of 5

5 The current radio communications for the fire and police departments from inside buildings along the commercial area of Route 1 is poor. For example from inside Senior Aerospace a firefighter cannot communicate to a firefighter outside the building or with fire dispatch on the fire department radio frequency because the signal has to reach the Moose Hill Fire Tower radio repeater site to be retransmitted back to other firefighters and dispatch. We have a location on the Koopman Lumber Billboard for a receiver site that will significantly improve radio communication in that area. Essentially what it does is listen for a radio transmission and if it hears one it sends it to the Moose Hill site and transmits it out. So in our example the radio signal from inside Senior Aerospace will only have to make it across the street to Koopman Lumber and it will be heard by the firefighters outside the building and fire dispatch. We have received $25,000 in donations from area businesses to support this upgrade. The funds received will setup the infrastructure at the Koopman Billboard but the additional funds are needed to create the microwave link to the Moose Hill Fire Tower Site. Future Meeting and Agenda Items Next meetings will be: November 19, 2015 December 10, 2015 December 17, 2015 January 9, 2016 January 21, 2016 February 8, 2016 School Department Department of Public Works Library, Recreation, Council on Aging & Civil Defense Facilities Tour (Saturday morning) Decision Meeting Projected date of Finance Committee review of capital outlay requests Topics not reasonably anticipated forty-eight hours in advance of the meeting None Adjournment MOTION: (Roach-Korin) To adjourn the meeting at 7:55pm - unanimous VOTED: (7-0-0) Page 5 of 5