CC 2018-06-26_09c Termination of Fire Dispatch Agreement
MEMORANDUM
TO: CITY COUNCIL
FROM: JAMES A BERGMAN, CITY MANAGER
BY: DEBBIE MALICOAT, DIRECTOR OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES
SUBJECT: CONSIDERATION OF TERMINATION OF FIRE DISPATCHING
AGREEMENT WITH THE CITY OF GROVER BEACH
DATE: JUNE 26, 2018
SUMMARY OF ACTION:
Terminating the current agreement for fire, rescue, and emergency medical aid
dispatching services will facilitate the Five Cities Fire Authority (FCFA) entering into an
agreement for dispatching services for the entire FCFA service area directly with the
dispatch provider.
IMPACT ON FINANCIAL AND PERSONNEL RESOURCES:
There is no net cost to this action. The costs of providing dispatch services have been
incorporated into the FCFA budget for FY 2018-19 and removed from the City’s budget.
RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended the City Council waive the ninety-day notice requirement and agree
to terminate the current agreement with the City of Grover Beach for fire, rescue, and
emergency medical aid dispatching, effective June 30, 2018.
BACKGROUND:
In 2014, police related emergency calls began to be dispatched by agreement with the
San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office. At the request of the FCFA, the City of Arroyo
Grande entered into an agreement with the City of Grover Beach for the provision of
fire, rescue, and emergency medical aid dispatching services. At that time, the Oceano
Community Services District had a long-established agreement with the City of Grover
Beach for fire related dispatching services. The budget for dispatching services has
historically been retained by each member of the FCFA.
Item 9.c. - Page 1
CITY COUNCIL
CONSIDERATION OF TERMINATION OF FIRE DISPATCHING CONTRACT WITH THE
CITY OF GROVER BEACH
JUNE 26, 2018
PAGE 2
ANALYSIS OF ISSUES:
Several factors are influencing how emergency calls for fire related services are
dispatched. First, most law enforcement agencies throughout the County are
transitioning their Computer Aided Dispatch/Report Management Systems (CAD/RMS)
to a common vendor, which will allow for better communication across jurisdictional
boundaries. The City of Grover Beach will be participating in this effort and would need
to purchase the fire “module” of the software if they continue to provide dispatching
services for the three agencies that comprise the FCFA. Second, there is a desire
amongst fire agencies throughout the County to consolidate dispatching services to a
dedicated Fire/EMS center managed by the County of San Luis Obispo/CAL FIRE.
Third, the FCFA has had a goal of consolidating the responsibility for the dispatching
agreement into the FCFA, rather than as a direct agreement between the agencies.
During the development of the FCFA budget for fiscal year 2018-19, the cost of paying
for the fire module software upgrade was compared with the cost of contracting with
CAL FIRE for dispatching. Under either scenario, there is a desire for FCFA to directly
contract with the dispatch provider, therefore the budget for dispatching all FCFA calls
was built into their budget and allocated to the three member agencies. The City
Managers of Arroyo Grande and Grover Beach, the Oceano Community Services
District Manager and the Fire Chief have been involved in discussions related to the
FCFA strategic plan and budget for several months. There is a mutual desire by all
three parties to transition to CAL FIRE for dispatching services and have FCFA directly
contract for that service, which is less expensive than continuing the service through the
City of Grover Beach.
Given these facts, the current dispatching agreement will no longer be required and
may be terminated by either party by providing notice in writing at least ninety (90) days
prior to termination. The City of Grover Beach has agreed to waive the 90-day
notification period and terminate the current dispatching agreement effective June 30,
2018 (See Attachment 1). Thereafter, the FCFA will enter into an agreement with the
City of Grover Beach for dispatching services from July 1, 2018 until transition with CAL
FIRE, which is expected to occur on or about October 1, 2018.
ALTERNATIVES:
The following alternatives are provided for the Council’s consideration:
1. Terminate the current agreement with the City of Grover Beach for fire, rescue, and
emergency medical aid dispatching;
2. Do not terminate the agreement and retain dispatching services through the City of
Grover Beach; or
3. Provide other direction to staff.
ADVANTAGES:
Termination of the agreement will alleviate the City of responsibility for fire, rescue, and
emergency aid dispatching and achieve the FCFA’s goal of consolidating this within the
Item 9.c. - Page 2
CITY COUNCIL
CONSIDERATION OF TERMINATION OF FIRE DISPATCHING CONTRACT WITH THE
CITY OF GROVER BEACH
JUNE 26, 2018
PAGE 3
FCFA. In addition, FCFA’s future costs for dispatching will be reduced through an
agreement with CAL FIRE.
DISADVANTAGES:
No significant disadvantages are identified.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW:
No environmental review is required for this item.
PUBLIC NOTIFICATION AND COMMENTS:
The Agenda was posted at City Hall and on the City’s website in accordance with
Government Code Section 54954.2.
Attachments:
1. Email from City of Grover Beach indicating agreement to waive 90-day
notification period.
Item 9.c. - Page 3
From: Matthew Bronson [mailto:mbronson@groverbeach.org]
Sent: Friday, June 15, 2018 12:53 PM
To: Jim Bergman; paavo@oceanocsd.org
Cc: Debbie Malicoat; David Hale; Steve Lieberman; John Peters
Subject: Waiver of fire/EMS dispatch termination notice
Jim and Paavo,
The City of Grover Beach (City) has provided fire/EMS dispatch services to the Five Cities
Fire Authority (FCFA) since the formation of the authority. The City bills the City of Arroyo Grande
and the Oceano Community Services District (OCSD) directly for these services. Beginning on
October 1, 2018, this fire/EMS dispatch will transition to a dedicated fire/EMS center managed by
the County of San Luis Obispo/CAL FIRE. Until then, the FCFA will contract directly with the City for
these services and dispatch costs for the FCFA are included in the 2018-19 FCFA operating budget.
Related to this new contract with the FCFA is the need to terminate the existing agreement between
the Cities of Grover Beach and Arroyo Grande and OCSD. Paragraph 6 of this agreement states:
“This Agreement shall be effective as of July 1, 2015. This Agreement may be terminated at
any time by either party, with or without cause, by providing notice in writing tendered to the
other party no less than least ninety (90) days of its intention to discontinue services and
thereby terminate said Agreement.”
In order to begin the new contract with FCFA on July 1, 2018, the existing agreement needs
to be terminated by June 30, 2018. As a result, the City of Grover Beach is hereby waiving the ninety
(90) days requirement for termination of the agreement between the Cities of Grover Beach and
Arroyo Grande and the OCSD. Please confirm your respective agency’s termination of this
agreement by June 30, 2018. Thank you.
Matthew Bronson | City Manager | ph 805.473.4567 | fax 805.489.9657 | mbronson@groverbeach.org
City of Grover Beach | 154 South 8th Street | Grover Beach, CA 93433 | www.groverbeach.org
ATTACHMENT 1
Item 9.c. - Page 4