The fire department presented its proposed 2026 operating and capital budget to councilors, highlighting equipment replacement needs, training costs and a new wellness subscription under consideration.
The department asked for targeted amounts to cover firefighter bunker-suit replacement on a rolling basis (staff said suits have an expected service life of about 10 years) and sought funds for batteries and replacement parts for automatic CPR devices. The department's Zoll representative told staff that some consumable parts and supplies for the auto-pulse automatic CPR devices could be phased out by 2028 and that batteries are specialty items with replacement cycles; staff proposed staggered battery purchases and noted that an equipment upgrade may be required before 2028.
The department also proposed phased radio improvements, starting with 12 enhanced remote-speaker microphones and fire-grade speaker-mic units for personnel in frontline positions; staff said the speaker/mic assemblies recommended are rated for high heat and water immersion and cost roughly $9,000 apiece if acquired on a rapid schedule, so staff recommended multi-year purchases. The department said county radio infrastructure remains in place and interoperability is retained.
On personnel and wellness, the chief described a proposed Lexipol wellness and peer-support platform that would be anonymous to individual users while providing the department-level dashboard for usage; staff said they would monitor uptake and not renew if the service proved unused. The department also requested modest increases to travel and training budgets so members could attend nationally recognized conferences and technical rescue training.
Staff noted that EMS supply procurement might be reduced through participation in Parkview's vendor program, which offers lower pricing for hospital-affiliated purchases.
Ending: Councilors asked for a written inventory of bunker-suit ages and for formal quotes for radio and defibrillator upgrades; the department said it would document equipment ages and vendor quotes and return with an itemized capital plan.