Fire board considers starting focus group

POLSON — Todd Crossett, Polson city manager, approached the Polson Rural Fire Board about possibly starting what he called a “stakeholders group” at last week’s monthly meeting.

The group, to be made up of members of the fire board, fire fighters, city officials and “anyone with a stake” in the fire district, would come together to work out what Crossett called “complicated issues” that are faced time and again. Issues include things like impact fees, policies and training. The group could also work to share resources to solve these issues.

Crossett said everyone in the district is having a lot of conversations and the group would enable people to have these conversations in one place.

“There are two critical elements: trust and communication,” Crossett said to the board. “I think we can improve the levels of both trust and communication” within the fire community.

Crossett also recommended other fire districts, like Finley Point and Pablo, be involved as well.

“A full range of diversity at the table is key,” he said.

Board member Jim Manley said the idea was “the best [he had] heard in his years on the board.”

“It’s much better than arguing about things that don’t need to be argued about,” Manley said.

Board member Fred Nelson said some issues need to be taken care of between the board, the city and the firefighters.

“We don’t need to air dirty laundry to the public,” Nelson said.

Nelson suggested that the numbers on the board be limited and that Chief John Fairchild be the one to select firefighters to be on the board.

“I don’t think anyone should be excluded,” Manley said. “That’s part of the problem — perceived exclusion.”

Crossett said that the requirements of participation, a high level of commitment, willing to set goals, willing to have productive dialogue, will most likely limit the size of the group.

These kinds of groups work well when they are facilitated, Crossett said. Crossett also volunteered to be the one facilitating the group.

Nelson, along with board member Paul Laisey, strongly advocated for a limited number on the board; Nelson put forth a motion to limit the board to 10 members.

“I’m asking for flexibility to build support,” Crossett said. “But I also want to facilitate your vision.”

The board passed a motion to allow Crossett to begin building support within the city and county officials, as well as in the fire districts, to make the group.

The board also reported that the new fire station at the Polson Fairgrounds is nearly complete and will be ready for Fairchild to start moving into soon.

Fairchild also revealed his plan to move the wildland equipment into the new station while keeping the structure equipment at the Polson station.

With his plan, Fairchild said it would improve response time because it will let firefighters know immediately which station to respond to.

Chairperson Alison Meslin said the original plan called for both structure and wildland equipment to be at the fairgrounds station, so that if something happened to the bridge, the north part of the district would be covered.

Fairchild said that plan would confuse responders, but said that if his plan of splitting the equipment didn’t work, he would “definitely reevaluate it.”

The board unanimously passed a motion to turn the station over to the chief as soon as possible and to allow the chief to make the decisions about the equipment. The next fire board meeting will be Wed., Jan. 13.