Belleville city councillor Paul Carr has requested a staff report regarding a number of matters involving Belleville Fire and Emergency Services.
Carr made the request at Monday’s meeting of council wanting more information on matters related to volunteer firefighter recruitment, deployment, and operations.
His concerns regard gaps in data collection and other information that was highlighted in the approved Fire Master Plan, and more recently, the reduced volunteer firefighter numbers and response issues as council received in the recent Station Relocation Study.
Carr is asking that the staff report include information from March 2020 to March 2025.
He noted the Fire Master Plan that council approved last year has significant tax implications, especially for rural Ward 2 residents.
Only Carr and fellow Ward 2 Councillor Brown voted against the plan which was approved in July 2024.
He says while he respects council’s decisions he feels it is important that council be as informed as possible and the additional information is critical as they continue to make decisions regarding the city’s fire service.
After Monday’s meeting, Carr issued a release stating why he is concerned and what information he would like to see in the staff report.
Councillor Paul Carr requests staff report regarding the Belleville Fire and Emergency Services:
During today’s City Council meeting I requested a staff report on a number of matters involving the Belleville Fire and Emergency Services, particularly as it relates to volunteer firefighter recruitment, deployment, and operations.
I have expressed concerns regarding gaps in data collection and other information that was highlighted in the approved Fire Master Plan, and more recently, the reduced volunteer firefighter numbers and response issues as Council received in the recent Station Relocation Study.
Of the 11 items that I have requested information on, I want to emphasize that the request for financial details on the conversion of the entire city to full time fire response is for illustration purposes only. I whole-heartedly support our rural firefighter component and would not support a conversion to complete full time fire response. To be a volunteer firefighter is certainly an example of self sacrifice and community service. There continues to be incremental changes to the Belleville Fire and Emergency Services which has contributed to response area realignments and consequential tax implications. These financial details simply show the end game if this same road is travelled.
As we have already seen, the Council approved Fire Master Plan has significant tax implications and I did not vote in favour of them. I respect Council’s decisions however I feel it is important that Council be informed as possible. This additional information is critical as we continue to make decisions regarding fire service in our community.
City Council Meeting – 2025-03-10
New Business –
Request for Staff Report on matters regarding the Belleville Fire and Emergency Services and that the report include the following information from the period of March 2020 to March 2025:
1. Outline the number of third pumper responses into the rural area since implementation, including describing subsequent response requirements and identify any incidences of additional urban response into the rural area and the reasons for the anomalies to the expected level of service.
2. Total annual full time equivalent frontline firefighters for urban component.
3. Total annual overtime costs, including the number of calls backs, for the urban component (encompassing 2025 year to date).
4. Total annual volunteer firefighter numbers by assigned station. Historically, identify the highest annual number of volunteer firefighters and year as well as the lowest number and year.
5. Duration of vacancy period for Station 4 commander position.
6. Comprehensive annual recruitment efforts for the rural component, including number of recruitment drives, detailed description of hiring criteria, description of advertisements, advertising periods, methods of advertising and its duration, number of applications received (including geographical location i.e. ward), number of testing opportunities per recruitment drive, annual number of planned versus actual hires and details regarding geographical hiring considerations for rural response times.
7. Detailed outline of data collection gaps with both the urban and rural fire components.
8. Confirmation as to whether urban and volunteer radio transmissions include response reporting and whether recordings are retained?
9. An outline of actions being taken by fire management to close data collection gaps, methods to implement accuracy and implementation date.
