CITY OF MENIFEE
SUBJECT: Agreement with County of Riverside for Fire Services MEETING DATE: May 15, 2024
TO: Mayor and City Council
PREPARED BY: Rebekah Kramer, Assistant to the City Manager REVIEWED BY: Mark Scoville, Fire Division Chief
APPROVED BY: Armando G. Villa, City Manager
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RECOMMENDED ACTION
1. Approve and authorize the City Manager to execute the Cooperative Agreement with the County of Riverside for fire protection, fire prevention, rescue, and emergency medical services provided by CAL FIRE in the City of Menifee for Fiscal Years 2024/2025 through 2026/2027 for total estimated cost of $60,548,973.
DISCUSSION
Since the City of Menifee’s incorporation, fire protection, fire prevention, rescue, and emergency medical services have been provided by CAL FIRE through a Cooperative Agreement (“Agreement”) with the County of Riverside. The Agreement between the City of Menifee and the County of Riverside, renewed in November 2021, is set to expire on June 30, 2024. On April 3, 2024, a workshop was held with the City Council to review and discuss the fire services provided to Menifee by CAL FIRE/Riverside County Fire. The proposed Agreement would enable the City to continue to have CAL FIRE/Riverside County Fire provide fire services for the next three years, extending from July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2027.
To match Menifee’s population growth, the City has made significant investments in expanding fire services, including enhancement of facilities, procurement of equipment, and recruitment of personnel to bolster fire suppression capabilities, and community fire risk reduction and prevention efforts in the last five years. These investments, listed below, have helped reduce response times as call volume has continued to increase along with population growth as shown Graph 1 on the following page.
•Acquisition of a new fire ladder truck – August 2021
•Addition of second medic squad at Fire Station 7 – September 2022 •Improvements to Fire Station 68 (enhancements to living areas to accommodate additional personnel) – August 2023
City of Menifee Staff Report
Agreement with County of Riverside for Fire Services
May 15, 2024
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•Addition of an emergency medical services specialist and fire safety specialist – 2023 •Acquisition of a new medic patrol truck - May 2023
•Replacement of Fire Station 5 – scheduled completion Fall 2024 •Improvements to Fire Station 76 (enhancements to living area to accommodate additional personnel) – construction scheduled to commence June 2024 GRAPH 1- FIRE SERVICES CALLS FOR SERVICE/RESPONSE TIMES Under the terms of the proposed Agreement, CAL FIRE/Riverside County Fire would continue to provide the personnel required to support fire protection, fire prevention, rescue, and emergency medical services with a combination of City owned and County owned and operated facilities and equipment including:
•Four Fire stations (City Owned)
•Four Fire engines (County owned)
•Ladder truck (City owned with access to County reserve units) •Medic patrol truck (City owned)
•Medic squad vehicle (City owned with access to County reserve units) •Four-wheel drive utility vehicle (County owned)
•Urban search and rescue unit vehicle and equipment (County owned) The cost estimate for Fiscal Year (FY) 2024/2025 includes one-time cost savings resulting from a supplemental pension payment incorporated within the proposed state budget. This adjustment would reduce the allocation in the FY2024/2025 budget for fire contract services by $763,828 (from $19,918,691 to $19,154,863).
Beginning in November 2024, CAL FIRE/Riverside County Fire will be shifting from a 72-hour to a 66-hour workweek adding a fire captain and two firefighters to support operations. This change in staffing aligns with industry standards, designed to improve safety and fire fighter retention efforts. Incorporating the increased staffing complement required to support a 66-hour workweek
City of Menifee Staff Report
Agreement with County of Riverside for Fire Services
May 15, 2024
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for a full year, the projected operational cost under the terms of the Agreement in FY2025/2026 and FY2026/2027 would increase to $20,697,055.
GRAPH 2 – FY2024/2025-FY2026/2027 CAL FIRE/RIV. COUNTY FIRE CONTRACT COST * FY2024/2025 estimated budget includes one-time cost savings resulting from a supplemental pension payment incorporated within the proposed state budget.
It is anticipated that a fire engine would be needed to support the new fire station included as part of the Menifee Valley Specific Plan Development Agreement (MVSP DA) approved by the City Council on February 21, 2024. Additionally, as calls for service continue to increase with the City’s growth it is expected that there will be a need for a third medic squad in the City. Given that the projected cost for a fully equipped fire engine is $2,000,000 and the cost of a fully equipped medic squad vehicle is $400,000, staff recommend placing the anticipated one-time savings in a vehicle reserve fund as part of the proposed FY2024/2025 mid-cycle budget adjustment. This would help to provide for the acquisition of a new fire engine and/or medical squad vehicle within the next three to five years.
The staffing levels established in the attached Agreement for FY2024/2025 through FY2026/2027 are outlined in Exhibit “A. The Agreement also includes terms for services provided by the Office of the Fire Mashal outlined in Exhibit “D” and terms for Fire Engine use and maintenance outlined in Exhibit “C”. While the cost estimates outlined in Exhibit “A” are based on the top-step for all authorized personnel, the City is only charged for the actual cost of service. Graph 3 on the following page shows the budget compared to actual cost of fire services for the five-year period extending from July 1, 2018, through June 30, 2023.
City of Menifee Staff Report
Agreement with County of Riverside for Fire Services
May 15, 2024
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GRAPH 3 - BUDGET VS ACTUAL EXPENDITURES
The proposed Agreement is structured to allow for service expansion as needed throughout the term of the Agreement. Future expansion of fire services, including facilities, equipment and personnel would be guided by development trends, shifts in population density, infrastructure enhancements, and regional fire station expansion, considered in conjunction with the service delivery objectives outlined by CAL FIRE/Riverside County Fire Department. These objectives include:
•Maintaining an average emergency response time of 5 minutes or less, achieved 90% of the time.
•Proactively engaging in community risk reduction through fire prevention and risk assessment.
•Providing “zero-minute” response for life safety through community engagement programs.
STRATEGIC PLAN OBJECTIVE
Safe and Vibrant Community
City of Menifee Staff Report
Agreement with County of Riverside for Fire Services
May 15, 2024
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FISCAL IMPACT
The fiscal impact for the proposed Agreement with the County of Riversides is based upon the actual cost of providing fire service as outlined in Exhibit “A” for an estimated total cost of $60,548,973 over the three-year period extending from July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2027. Funding for FY2024/2025 is available within the FY2024/2025 adopted budget, supported by the General Fund and Quality of Life Measure DD. Funding for future fiscal years would be budgeted as part of their respective year’s budget.
The projected one-time cost savings totaling $763,828 from the adopted budget in FY2024/2025 would be placed within a vehicle reserve fund to provide for the acquisition of a new fire engine and/or medical squad vehicle as part of the proposed FY2024/2025 mid-cycle budget adjustment.
TABLE 1 – FISCAL IMPACT
Fiscal Year Account No. Cost of Agreement
2024/2025 100/105-4445-52856 $19,154,863
2025/2026 100/105-4445-52856 $20,697,055
2026/2027 100/105-4445-52856 $20,697,055
No additional budget appropriation action(s) is required.
ATTACHMENTS
1. Proposed Cooperative Agreement (2024-2027)
2. Current Cooperative Agreement (2021-2024)