Should Ann Arbor close fire stations? Weigh in at first of 5 meetings Tuesday night
The first in a series of public input meetings on a proposal to reorganize the Ann Arbor Fire Department — and go from five to three stations — takes place Tuesday night.
Fire Chief Chuck Hubbard is expected to be on hand for the meeting, which lasts from 6-8 p.m. at Cobblestone Farm, 2781 Packard.
Residents who can't attend Tuesday's meeting will have four other chances to hear a similar presentation, ask questions and voice their opinions.
The schedule is as follows:
- Sept. 19, 6-8 p.m., Ann Arbor Senior Center, 1320 Baldwin Ave.
- Sept. 20, 6-8 p.m., Downtown Library, 343 S. Fifth Ave.
- Sept. 25, 6-8 p.m., Traverwood Library, 3333 Traverwood Drive
- Sept. 26, 6-8 p.m., CTN Studios, 2805 S. Industrial Highway
Ann Arbor officials are considering a plan to reorganize the Ann Arbor Fire Department and switch from from five to three stations.
Ryan J. Stanton | AnnArbor.com
"I think the proposal has merit or else I wouldn't have brought it forward," he said. "Council said we need more community input, so that's what we're continuing to do. And we sincerely are going out to listen. It's too early for me to say what the outcome might be because we do need to listen."
Under the plan Hubbard first presented in March, one station would be located on the north side of the city (Station 5 off Plymouth Road on Beal Avenue), one on the south side (Station 2 at Stadium and Packard) and one downtown (Station 1 at Fifth Avenue and Huron).
That plan requires reopening Station 2, which was closed several years ago, and closing Station 3 at 2130 Jackson Ave., Station 4 at 2415 Huron Parkway, and Station 6 at 1881 Briarwood Circle.
Hubbard points out the fire department is required to have at least four firefighters on scene before anyone can enter a burning building. The city's current response model includes three firefighters at each station, which means two trucks have to be on scene before firefighters can enter a building.
Hubbard said his plan would allow the fire department to better meet national fire response standards because four firefighters would be on duty at each of the three stations.
Ryan J. Stanton covers government and politics for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at ryanstanton@annarbor.com or 734-623-2529. You also can follow him on Twitter or subscribe to AnnArbor.com's email newsletters.
Comments
Peregrine
Wed, Sep 19, 2012 : 4:17 a.m.
@Jack Eaton, there is no proposal, much less a plan, to spend millions of general fund dollars for a new train station. Please read this article (http://www.annarbor.com/news/mayor-john-hieftje-responds-to-criticisms-about-funding-for-a-new-train-station-in-ann-arbor) to get a sense of the wide range of funding options.
Jack Eaton
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 7:01 p.m.
The City is proposing closing fire stations because it claims we cannot afford to fully staff all of our existing fire stations. A majority on Council intends to spend millions of dollars of unrestricted general fund money to build a new Amtrak station. Rather than spend a few hundred thousand dollars more each year to staff our fire stations, we will consolidate the five stations into three and build a shiny new Amtrak station. Think about that choice of priorities.
Razor
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 6:31 p.m.
In regards to the 2 in 2 out rule...I would reccommend to anyone posting on here, stop by the closest station and talk with the firefighters, ask the questions that concern you and your family. Ask to look at the maps that most if not all stations post in their respective stations. I know myself as a FF (not AAFD) if I respond to a fire with intrapment I am not waiting for another crew to arrive, I will do my best to get in a rescue that said person.
gofigure
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 5:54 p.m.
Ideally all the stations should be kept open. Due to budgets cut etc... means there needs to a compromise. If the FF's have to abide by the 2 in 2 out rule then having more FF's per station makes sense. As it is now, multiple stations sometimes respond to a call. Common sense would indicate response time of 2 trucks from 2 different locations could be longer than 2 trucks from the same location. Whether I agree or disagree with Chief Hubbard's ideas is not the issue. The issue is, is the reorganization the best thing for the city and the Fire Department. I believe it is.
Ruth
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 4:42 p.m.
I am opposed to the closing of these fire stations. Has anyone obtained any information as to the impact on home insurance rates with the increased distance of the fire station from your residence?
talker
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 10:51 p.m.
I checked several weeks ago. With USAA at least, being within 2 miles of a (working) fire station, is an important measure. There would be an increase in our fire insurance (part of homeowners' insurance) if the nearest fire station were beyond 2 miles from our home. Many people in town could be affected by that. (though we'll remain within the two mile distance under the proposed plan). Others may wish to check if the proposed fire station plan will affect the cost of their fire insurance. As of when I called for insurance information, Ann Arbor hadn't been downgraded in a way that would raise insurance rates due to any lowering of safety standards.
Razor
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 12:32 p.m.
Correct me if I am wrong....I have not scene Ann Arbor get any smaller over the years....only taller in larger high rise buildings, thus more people living an working here. Secondly how is it that the east and west sides of town will have increased response times (if their respective stations close) and downtown, south and north maintain their current protection?? If you read the ICMA study that the city had commissioned, it stated that the placement of the current stations were properly place for maximum coverage.
Peregrine
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 3:54 p.m.
Firefighters protect life and property. I think we would all agree that life is more important than property. To best protect life, we need four firefighters on the scene as quickly as possible, so they can enter the building and look for lives to save. Right now, firefighters from two separate stations need to arrive before there are four firefighters on the scene. That delay puts lives in danger. Given our current resources, it's better to have three fully staffed fire stations than five partially staffed fire stations. The case is made visually by Chief Hubbard's report, which includes maps that show which parts of Ann Arbor can get four firefighters on site with four minutes of travel time under the two plans. The region covered with the reorganization is much larger than the present organization. See: http://a2gov.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=F&ID=1822651&GUID=58A6A5F8-FE77-41BE-B89D-28F1A9B0F3FB
jmac
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 12:09 p.m.
Wouldn't it be more prudent to propose closing one fire station as a cost saving measure and gauging the effect of that closing before going whole-hog with closings? Are other townships (Pittsfield, Saline) going to have to respond to AA fires if all of these AA firestations close??? That would have a negative impact on fire response times in nearby townships (which have their own fires to deal with!).
Carole
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 10:41 a.m.
Thought this had already been discussed at great length, and most comments I remember were in favor of NOT closing fire stations. I still vote for not closing any --
snapshot
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 3:17 a.m.
I'm sure these meeting will be packed with firefighters looking intimidation and getting a good look at any citizens opposing their agenda. but when they are in "contract negotiations" citizens are shut out, everthing is confidential and hush hush. Seems just a bit skewed to me. I say firefighters should not be allowed to attend these citizen meetings or that citizens sho seems fair to me. be allowed to attend contract negotiations. Only seems fair to me.
Romie
Wed, Sep 26, 2012 : 8:45 a.m.
Read the Contract. It is on the city website. Can you raise a family on $14 an hour? That is the pay my friend.....
talker
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 10:58 p.m.
Firefighters are at least as concerned about safety as you are. Firefighters may intentionally stay out of a political argument about fire safety, but wouldn't retaliate against any other citizen that he or she (also a citizen) disagrees with. Actually, I think many firefighters don't want to close stations, but don't have the opportunity to decide to keep more stations open.
tdw
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 11:29 a.m.
I don't live in Ann Arbor so by rights I shouldn't comment BUT I'm going to anyway. Firefighters aren't citizens ? Should their families be excluded as well ?
snapshot
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 3:19 a.m.
whoops....."or that citizens should be allowed to attend contract negotiations"
deb
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 1:16 a.m.
C'mon man. Do some journalism. You do not even need to get a quote from anyone in the city administration. Type the locations of the meetings into google maps. Then type the addresses of the new and old fire stations. You get distances that back up the assertion that the city picked locations for these meetings away from those West of Main Street that would be most affected by the plan. Put up PDFs of the maps. Additionally, why is this story coming out on annarbor.com at 7:15pm two days before the first meeting? It seems as if this story will be buried on the second page of the website by morning. I am guessing the website has already had its majority of hits for the today, so most people that get their local information from the site will probably not see it, unless it is rearranged tomorrow. Maybe I am being a conspiracy theorist, but his whole thing seems a bit fishy.
E Claire
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 5:09 p.m.
deb, you are not imagining things. This news outlet is very pro-mayor.
deb
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 4:38 a.m.
I did not say good, just some journalism. Maps would be helpful in showing there are no meetings on the west side The theory is that annarbor.com is complicit with the powers that be in advancing their agenda, whatever it may at the time. The conspiracy is they do not want public input. Here, no questions were asked, there are no meetings in the areas most affected, and the announcement of the meetings comes two days before the first one? @ peregrine Im sad you could not distinguish between the two points
Peregrine
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 3:03 a.m.
Sorry, @deb, but as interesting and as helpful as maps would be, they certainly would not back up your conspiracy theory. I'm sad that you would think that that's journalism.
deb
Mon, Sep 17, 2012 : 11:35 p.m.
The new plan that has no fire stations West of Main, therefore there will be no meeting West. I urge everyone to look at where these meetings are scheduled to take place, and where, if this plan is implemented, the three fire stations will be. I would expect there will be nothing but positive feedback. Hey Ryan, Why not ask Mr. Powers about the process of picking out where to have these meetings. I looked at your article and the first thing that jumped out to me was the location of the meeting spots.
Peregrine
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 3:01 a.m.
Aren't Cobblestone Farms and the Senior Center both in Ward 3? I think the conspiracy theory is silly, but having a meeting somewhere on the west side would be a good idea.
deb
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 1:23 a.m.
. . . but the [library] is in a tiny peninsular . . . .
deb
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 12:52 a.m.
I understand that part of it and realize that they actually have met that goal, but the fire station is in a tiny peninsular part of the ward and is probably the closest point in any ward to all four other wards. My point is there is no meeting for residents, particularly those situated on the west side and the meetings are all very close to where the 3 fire stations, as proposed, would be open. Additionally, political boundaries everywhere are subject to gerrymandering. Your telling me that there was no place west of Main Street, in any ward, that could have held the meeting?
Ryan J. Stanton
Tue, Sep 18, 2012 : 12:05 a.m.
I believe there was an attempt to hold one meeting in each of the city's five wards, which is why you're seeing the meetings where they are.
deb
Mon, Sep 17, 2012 : 11:37 p.m.
The new plan has no fire stations . . . will be no meeting West of Main