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Fire Chief Kapler stated this will be the #2 position and it is important to recognize that a strong structure is needed. He stated he selected the Deputy Fire Chief title because some duties will go along with that position and put an emphasis that it is the #2 position. He stated the current people work during the day and as a City, the majority of fire calls are also during the day. Chairperson Tossey asked how many structure fires there were. Fire Chief Kapler stated last year there were 14-15 structure fires. Chairperson Tossey stated he has a hard time considering a full-time Deputy Chief position for a City of this size, especially with its economic problems. He felt there was opportunity for a Fire Inspector being a #2 position and was concerned that a Deputy Chief may garner a higher pay. He noted Fire Chief Kapler is very active and attends many meetings, which is great, but some of those commitments could be downsized somewhat. Councilmember Backous stated he is not saying this is not an important position but agrees there are budget issues and the City is also asking residents to fund a street improvement program. He stated Ramsey is reaching out to other communities for shared fire services, which he supports, but does not know if Ramsey is getting back an adequate amount to cover the costs for the additional tasks. Councilmember Backous stated if there is more burden on City staff and additional costs with shared services that is not reimbursed, he does not want to be part of it. Rather, he supported joined services and cutting costs. Fire Chief Kapler stated he does not know if a good gauge is the number of structure fires because the Code enforcement and fire prevention results in people not spending money to repair their homes, which is huge. He believed fire prevention should be #1 on the list. He stated administrators are looking at the shared services cost analysis and the effort expended by staff to get it to this point is not being recouped. Councilmember Backous stated if Ramsey is adding staff to cover the burden for joint fire services then either the other cities need to make enough reimbursement to cover those costs, or Ramsey should get out of it. Fire Chief Kapler stated a lot of the questions related to costs are included in the consultant's report and it contains good information to determine if shared services is a good idea. He stated after reviewing that study, he thinks there will be an improvement in services and in the long term, reduction in costs. City Administrator Ulrich stated there was originally five cities considering shared services with Ramsey. Then Oak Grove dropped out so it is now at four cities. He explained there is anticipation that administration costs of the joint venture will be shared, though the exact numbers are not yet known. He stated he and Fire Chief Kapler will work on that organization for shared equipment. City Administrator Ulrich agreed that Ramsey has the highest costs because it has the biggest Department and population to serve and as the model is expanded for shared services, all will contribute toward those costs. He believed there was the option to share Personnel Committee / October 15, 2013 Page 5 of 9