Board of Directors Meeting - 1/17/05


General Board Meeting called to order at 7:00 p.m. by President Mr. Stonebraker. Present were Directors Mr. Stonebraker, Mr. Schloss and Mr. Bettag, Chief Svetanics and Ms. Vincent. Also present were Firefighter Captain Bertelsmeier and Citizens of the District.

Pledge of allegiance led by Captain Bertelsmeier.

There was one addition to the action agenda No. 8.13 by Mr. Schloss to approve Lemay Fire Protection District General Policies and Procedures.

Motion by Mr. Stonebraker to accept the agenda as amended, 2nd by Mr. Schloss, roll call vote, all ayes.

Motion by Mr. Schloss to accept minutes from the executive sessions of December 1, 2004 and December 9, 2004, and the general sessions of December 13, 2004, and December 15, 2004 as presented, 2nd by Mr. Bettag, roll call vote, all ayes.

Mr. Bettag gave the treasurer’s report for the year ending December 31, 2004. Mr. Bettag reported that we stayed pretty much within the budget in that we were over only about $4,000 for 2004.

Mr. Bettag stated that District Accountant Joe Schnieders made adjustments on wages of ambulance personnel that will accurately reflect the hours reported between the general and ambulance personnel for 2005.

Mr. Bettag commented on the overtime reduction incentive that we implemented in 2004 and saved the District over $14,000 in overtime wages.

Mr. Bettag reported that we collected $26,720 in ambulance fees for the month of December, which is just above the monthly budgeted amount.

Motion by Mr. Stonebraker to accept the treasurer’s report, 2nd by Mr. Schloss, roll call vote, all ayes.

Chief Svetanics reported that January 18, 2005 is the closing date for filing for the Board of Directors Election, and the requirements are that you are 25 years of age, a registered voter and a resident of the District for two years.

Chief Svetanics reported that the City of St. Louis is purchasing 13 new ambulances from Marque Ambulance for $129,000 each through a government contract. He, Lt. Michalski and Pvt. Schwenk met with a representative from Marque on January 13th to see if they could match specs with the ambulance we want. Matt Hoffman, the District’s attorney has checked to make sure we can add on to a government contract as long as that agency has done due diligence in advertising for bids and researching the product. Our specs are 97% the same as the City’s. If buying an ambulance outright, the cost for comparable ambulance would average $160,000, which would be great savings for the District. The Board of Directors would like to recognize the hard work of Lt. Michalski and Pvt. Schwenk for many months of organizing and reviewing the specs of a new ambulance.

Chief Svetanics answered a question for a Citizen about the average life expectancy of an ambulance to be 150,000 miles, or five years. Our 1998 ambulance has 158,000 miles and the money we are spending on repairs is extensive. When asked what the time line for purchasing an ambulance would be, Chief Svetanics responded that it would take about five months.

Chief Svetanics stated that we are looking for the best price on a new treadmill and have found a commercial grade demo from True Advantage Fitness for about $2,000. The estimate to fix the10 year old treadmill is $1,500, so we would request at this time to purchase the new one. Chief Svetanics stated that all crews had an input into the final selection after collecting and reviewing varying bids.

Chief Svetanics reported that the overtime reduction incentive worked very well and recommend that we keep it in 2005.

Chief Svetanics also reported that when we went with our Insurance carrier, VFIS, they recommended new rules, regulations and procedures to implement. Local #2677 has reviewed the documents.

Chief Svetanics stated that we are looking at a few repairs in the future. We had the furnace fixed by Laclede Gas on one of the coldest days of the year. The roof needs work because it leaks into the first floor and engine room. We are also looking at eventually replacing a pumper.

Monthly reports presented on training by each crew member, maintenance report, fire incident report and summary, ambulance statistics, P.I.O. report, lockbox monthly credit report, community services report, South County Fire Alarm Association report and St. Louis Metro Fire District Alliance Minutes. Mr. Stonebraker stated that Pvt. Johnny Lewellen, the new District Public Information Officer, is doing an excellent job after reading aloud his monthly report.

Mr. Stonebraker reported that we installed 218 infant car seats last year and checked another 22. Thanks to the St. Louis County Health Department, we gave out 96 bicycle helmets in 2004. Mr. Stonebraker also reported that we installed 214 smoke detectors in our District throughout the year. Mr. Stonebreaker stated that we should commend the Union and members for helping the community.

Motion by Mr. Stonebraker to approve amendment to Midwest Bank Agreement as recommended, changing term of agreement to: “Commence on or about March 1, 2001, and shall end five years thereafter on or about March 1, 2005,” to, “March 1, 2006,” amending the original agreement for a typographical error. 2nd by Mr. Schloss, roll call all ayes.

Motion by Mr. Stonebraker to approve purchase of new treadmill as presented, 2nd by Mr. Stonebraker, roll call vote, all ayes.

Motion by Mr. Stonebraker to adopt addition to Lemay Fire Protection District General Policies and Practices titled, “Witness/Other Relevant Persons – Interview Form, Conducting an Internal Interview,” 2nd by Mr. Bettag, roll call vote all ayes.

Motion by Mr. Stonebraker to adopt addition to Lemay Fire Protection District General Policies and Practices titled, “Workplace Wrongdoing – Complainant Interview Form, Conducting an Internal Investigation,” 2nd by Mr. Schloss, roll call vote all ayes.

Motion by Mr. Bettag to adopt addition to Lemay Fire Protection District General Policies and Practices titled, “Workplace Wrongdoing – Accused Interview Form, Conducting an Internal Investigation,” 2nd by Mr. Stonebraker, roll call all ayes.

Motion by Mr. Stonebraker to adopt Lemay Fire Protection District General Directives and Policies Chapter 2, Page 9, as revised. 2nd by Mr. Schloss, roll call vote, all ayes.

Motion by Mr. Bettag to adopt Lemay Fire Protection District General Directives and Policies Chapter 2, Page 20, as revised. 2nd by Mr. Stonebraker, roll call vote, all ayes.

Motion by Mr. Stonebraker that the Lemay Fire Protection District General Policies and Practices are adopted as published, 2nd by Mr. Schloss, roll call votes all ayes.

The Board of Directors would like to commend Captain Jegel for all the work he did on this project as we are all expressing appreciation. The members feel that it is better to have something in writing, some procedures to follow.

Next general meeting scheduled for Tuesday, February 15, 2005 at 7:00 p.m. The regular open meeting for bill discussion scheduled for Wednesday, February 23, 2005 at 3:30 p.m.

Question posed by Walter Kardell as to what was closing time on last day for election filing and how many people had filed. The Board answered that 5:00 p.m. on the 18th day of January, 2005 and including Mr. Kardell there are four people to date.

Motion by Mr. Stonebraker to adjourn general board meeting at 7:42 p.m., 2nd by Mr. Bettag, roll call vote, all ayes.

Respectfully submitted,



Jerry G. Schloss, Secretary

JGS/pgv