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IRRRB to help facilitate joint EMS building plans

Tower and Breitung looking at 13,500 square-foot facility to house fire, police and ambulance

Marshall Helmberger
Posted 5/7/15

TOWER-SOUDAN—The planning effort for a proposed joint Tower–Breitung emergency services building is getting a helping hand from the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board.

Chris Ismil, …

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IRRRB to help facilitate joint EMS building plans

Tower and Breitung looking at 13,500 square-foot facility to house fire, police and ambulance

Posted

TOWER-SOUDAN—The planning effort for a proposed joint Tower–Breitung emergency services building is getting a helping hand from the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board.

Chris Ismil, who does outreach for the IRRRB, told members of the joint planning committee that he would assist in facilitating their planning effort. Ismil, most recently, facilitated a fire department merger between Bovey and Coleraine, and he said many of the lessons learned in that effort could help guide the effort locally.

Unlike Bovey and Coleraine, however, the city of Tower and Breitung Township are looking at building an emergency services building that would combine the two fire departments, as well as the Tower Ambulance, and the Breitung Police into a single facility.

Members of the planning board discussed several issues that must be resolved before that can happen, including selecting a location, determining the size, design, and construction methods for a new building, and determining how to merge the two departments and their pensions most efficiently.

“One of the biggest sticking points is merging the pensions,” said Breitung Supervisor Greg Dostert. That’s because Breitung and Tower have made different contributions to their pension funds over the years, so it still must be determined how pensions for members in a new department would be calculated. While all members would receive the same pension contributions once the new department is formed, calculating pension levels for their prior services would add some complication. Ismil, however, said it’s not an issue that should prevent progress. “Others have done it. It’s just part of the process,” he said. “You could proceed without finalizing the pension issue,” he said, noting that Bovey and Coleraine merged operations without combining their past pension accounts.

Joint planning board members have been reluctant to discuss possible locations at this point, although sites along the Junction Road are being considered. Board members acknowledge that the location decision could be politically controversial, but Ismil recommended that board members come back at an upcoming meeting with at least three possible locations, including at least one in Tower.

While the final selection has the potential to be controversial, Ismil said the right location should become pretty clear to all once all the various location criteria— such as safe access, response time, and adequate space, are all considered. “At the end of the day, you’ll all agree on the location,” he said.

The planning committee also briefly discussed the type of construction for a new facility. While most felt a metal building would likely be the cheapest to construct, some argued for something more substantial, such as pre-cast concrete, to provide for longevity.

Ismil said it comes down to what the communities are willing to spend. He noted that the 9,500-square foot joint facility being built by Bovey and Coleraine, with a price tag of approximately $900,000-$950,000, is a metal building.

The joint facility currently being considered by Tower and Breitung would be significantly larger, with a current estimate of 13,500 square feet, in order to house all of the equipment currently maintained by the two departments. The local facility, however, would also include offices for the ambulance service and the police, which aren’t included in the Bovey and Coleraine building.

At this point it’s not clear where all the funding would come from for the facility. Ismil noted that IRRRB has contributed about half the funding for the Bovey and Coleraine building, or a bit less than $500,000, and he said he didn’t envision the agency’s board would approve any more than that for a joint facility in Tower or Breitung. Joint planners discussed possible funding sources, including state bonding, USDA Rural Development, as well as a local contribution from the city and the township.