Fire Commission - February 13, 2019

 

 

The Video can be viewed by clicking this link:  http://sanfrancisco.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=180&clip_id=32…

 

President Nakajo called the meeting to order at 9:01 a.m.

 

1. ROLL CALL

 

Commission President Stephen Nakajo Present

Commission Vice President Francee Covington Present

Commissioner Michael Hardeman Present

Commissioner Ken Cleaveland Present

Commissioner Joe Alioto Veronese Present 

 

Chief of Department Joanne Hayes-White Present.

 

Mark Gonzales Deputy Chief -- Operations

Jeanine Nicholson Deputy Chief --Administration

 

Andy Zanoff EMS

Dan DeCossio Bureau of Fire Prevention

Tony Rivera Support Services

Michael Cochran Homeland Security

Khai Ali Airport

Joel Sato Training Division

 

Assistant Chiefs

Bill Storti Division 2

Brooke Baker Division 3

 

Staff

Mark Corso Deputy Director of Finance

Tony Boone Director of Occupational Environmental Health and Safety

 

2. PUBLIC COMMENT

 

There was no public comment.

 

3. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES [Discussion and possible action]

Discussion and possible action to approve meeting minutes.

 

• Minutes from Regular Meeting on January 23, 2019

 

Commissioner Cleaveland Moved to approve the above meeting Minutes.  Commissioner Hardeman Seconded.  Motion to approve above Minutes was unanimous.

 

There was no public comment.

 

4. PRESENTATION FROM THE UNITED FIRE SERVICE WOMEN [Discussion]

Presentation from members of the United Fire Service Women.

 

Katherine Alba, Vice President of the UFSW and a 20-year member of the Department and Lt. Heather Buren, Director of UFSW and a 22-year member of the Department presented the attached PowerPoint.  https://sf-fire.org/sites/default/files/COMMISSION/Fire%20Commission%20…

 

They each touched on the history of the organization as well as the mission, which is to support and advocate for the welfare of women in the San Francisco Fire Department and to create a network of women in the fire service, ensuring a diverse and unified department that represents the city they serve.  Lt. Buren added that their goal is to work with the administration, with the Department, for the good of not just the women in the Department but for all members in the Department.  A variety of things that they cover include making sure promotional and training information is readily available and accessible and to advocate for the women in the Department, as well as others.  She mentioned that in 1976, women were first allowed to take the entrance exam for the SFFD and that nobody succeeded at that time, and in 1981 the SFFD started to do a recruitment effort that created a training program for a group of 30 women which was terminated shortly thereafter and in 1987, a lawsuit was settled and women were hired through a 10 year mandate, the federal consent decree.  She added that the first 7 women were hired in 1987.  She mentioned that in 1997 the United Fire Serice Women became an employee group and seven years after that, they became a 501(C) (3) and they currently have 181 members.  She touched on diversity by gender, recruitment efforts, leadership within the Department and health, wellness and cancer including ongoing studies and results and risk factors. She touched on the $600,000 grant from the California Breast Cancer Initiative they secured for a biomonitoring study.  Ms. Alba spoke about their training opportunities offered by their organization.  She also described their roles as mentors to expose young women and students to the possibilities of a career in the fire service which include Camp Blaze and NorCal First Alarm girls fire camp.  She also mentioned that they support the community through the Toy Program and Cancer Prevention Foundation.

 

Commissioner Cleaveland thanked them for their fantastic presentation and asked what makes their training unique.  Lt. Buren stated that besides the great training they get from the SFFD, there are times they want supplemental training, so the women can feel a little more comfortable to ask questions that you might not ask in a whole big group, such as more forcible entry, and pump operations classes.  Ms. Alba acknowledged the great training they receive from the Division of Training and that the staff is phenomenal.

 

Commissioner Veronese asked what the department could be doing better in the way of women’s issues.  Ms. Alba stated that they are only complimenting what the Department has already set in place in terms of turnout extractors and officers in the field making sure your equipment is on properly, they have good policies in place and things of that sort  Lt. Buren added that they could continue to advocates for women in the fire service through recruitment and continue to fund outreach.  Commissioner Veronese confirmed that the public may buy UFSW T-shirts online at UFSW for $20.00.  He also confirmed that currently there are no manufacturers that make turnout coats without flame retardants embedded in them.

 

Vice President Covington thought the presentation was fabulous and thought the video attached to the presentation was amazing and should be distributed to other Departments.    She also confirmed that Camp Blaze is a weeklong sleepover camp and the NorCal camp is a weekend camp.  Vice President Covington encouraged them to continue the outreach and recruitment efforts.

 

Commissioner Hardeman thanked them for their very well-done presentation.  He talked about his experience with recruitment and training women in the late '70s when he went to work full time for his Union, and how difficult it was attracting and training women.  Fortunately, his Union was not under a Consent Decree as were many Building Trades Local Unions.  He mentioned that for the Fire Department to reach the goals they’ve reached is really impressive.

 

President Nakajo was grateful and appreciative of their presentation and stated that one of the goals of the Commission was to get the various affinity groups to present and bring them up to date, to be contemporary within the membership and they achieved that goal.  He added that it is important that the commission is educated as to what they are doing and how they are doing it.  He also asked that they inform the Commissioners of the upcoming March meeting, as he feels many members of the commission would love to attend that event. 

 

There was no public comment.

 

5. UPDATE ON THE STATUS OF STATION 13 [Discussion]

 

Director Mark Corso gave a brief presentation on an update on plans surrounding Fire Station 13, which over the past couple of years has had some formal legislation attached to it.  He presented the following PowerPoint:  https://sf-fire.org/sites/default/files/COMMISSION/Fire%20Commission%20…

 

He emphasized that this project is in the very early stages and there is not a lot of details associated with it.  He outlined the timelines and history of the project and how Proposition K at the time, began the initiative to look at every possible city property that could be used for affordable housing, either directly as actual housing, or indirectly by leveraging affordable housing elsewhere, such as through the sale of city-owned property.  He added that there were two pieces of legislation that were passed unanimously through the Board of Supervisors that pertain to 530 Sansome that sought to leverage affordable housing elsewhere in the city, the first piece in 2017 directed that the air-rights for that property at 530 Sansome be sold for the purposes of affordable housing in District 3 and it would result in a new modern fire station for Station 13.  The second piece in 2018 attempted to expedite the process and asked the Real Estate Division to issue a request for proposals for what a subject property would look like and resulting in funding for affordable housing and a new fire station at that location.  He stated that the intent of the Department of Real Estate has been to come before the Fire Commission in the late spring to review selected proposals, both a summary of all the proposals, and one that is deemed selected and take input from the Commission informing a final proposal to go to approval for the Board and the Mayor’s office.

 

Commissioner Veronese confirmed that the Department will have a seat at the table for review and selection of the submitted proposals and that Station 13 is considered city property.  He suggested that if the proposal goes through, that some of the funds be earmarked for affordable housing for firefighters, teachers and civil servants.  He also confirmed that if the proposal goes through, a brand-new firehouse will be built at that location.

 

Commissioner Cleaveland stated that the project excites him and applauded Supervisor Peskin for pushing on this issue.  He asked what the Mayor’s office and Supervisor Peskin had in mind as to how many units of affordable housing are proposed and who the commercial real estate agent is.  Mr. Corso answered that the agent is Colliers and he doesn’t have the specifics of the site and what’s being proposed but there is a 200-foot height limit.

 

Vice President Covington commented that when she first joined the Commission in 2013, Commissioner Cleaveland was consistently asking about air-rights of the various properties that hold firehouses and somehow air-rights for this particular property never came up.  She also mentioned that she has been advocating for years for housing for teachers and beginning firefighters and that they need more people in the Department who live in the city and have an opportunity to live in good places and be able to save money to hopefully purchase a home in this city.  She confirmed that the proposals are due the first week in March.

 

Commissioner Hardeman thought it was a good presentation with nice graphics.  He stated he has no problem with expediting all air-rights for stations that have to be rebuilt.  He confirmed that once a developer has been selected it will take about another four years for completion due to the entitlement process.

 

President Nakajo thanked Mr. Corso for his update and comments and stated that the Commissioners want to be updated on this subject matter.  He also suggested having a meeting with Supervisor Peskin to include the projection of the affordable housing in Chinatown with the funds gained from the development of the Station 13 project.

 

There was no public comment.

 

6. DRAFT OPERATING BUDGET – FISCAL YEARS 2019-2020/ 2020-2021 [Discussion and possible action]

Discussion and possible action to adopt the Fire Department’s Operating Budget for Fiscal Years 2019-2020/2020-2021.

 

Mark Corso gave an overview of the Department’s budget proposal.  The presentation is attached:  https://sf-fire.org/sites/default/files/COMMISSION/Fire%20Commission%20…

 

Mr. Corso explained in detail the write off adjustments they have on an annual basis and the population of calls that they have identified as having no identifiable home address.  He went over the timelines and budget process and was asking that the Commission approve the proposed budget.  He added that through the course of conversations, discussions with labor and administration, they have identified three main large needs as the highest priority for the Department, which includes EMS staffing, restoration of Incident Support Specialist, and equipment.  He also mentioned that the proposal currently recommends not meeting target reductions, and the consensus amongst discussions with labor and the Budget Committee is that given the needs facing the Department, it is very difficult, if not impossible to request reductions to the existing budget.  He added that the majority of the budget supports frontline emergency operations and a reduction would have an impact on those frontline operations. 

 

Commissioner Cleaveland confirmed that Fire Prevention would be increasing their fees approximately 4 percent in the next fiscal year.  He told Mr. Corso that he really appreciated his EMS cost recovery analysis and confirmed they are exploring additional supplemental reimbursement programs.  He also confirmed that there will be two academy classes for H-2 and H-3’s over the next two years, one class for each classification per year.  He also confirmed that if the Incident Support Specialist is brought back, they would need 26 additional personnel to fill those positions at a cost of about six and a half million dollars.

 

Commissioner Veronese confirmed that the Department writes off approximately 100 million dollars in statutory adjustments.  He suggested using those write off as a way of explaining our requested budget reductions the Mayor’s office has asked for.  He also suggested shifting the collection over to the hospitals as well as charging them a drop off fee to generate money for the Department.  He further recommended that the windfall of money that the Mayor’s office has announced should be split between the Fire Department, Department of Homelessness and the Health Department since the goal is to focus on homelessness and housing.  Commissioner Veronese advocated for annual cancer screening for all members and would like to get what the actual cost of that would be.  They discussed the elimination of fees for accessory dwelling units and once the impact to the department is known, Mr. Corso will report back. 

 

Vice President Covington thanked Mr. Corso and stated she was troubled by the fact that the Department will not be collecting fees for accessory dwelling units.  Mr. Corso assured her that they would make sure those discussions happen during the budget process with the Mayor.  Fire Marshal DeCossio explained that it is a new concept that has just been released and they are working with the Building Department as they collect the fees for the SFFD and he is trying to get an idea what kind of numbers they are looking at.  He added that they process about a thousand permits a month, and the ADU’s is a small percentage of that, possibly 50 or 60 a month.  Vice President Covington asked Mr. Corso if he could provide a global perspective on why we’re being asked to reduce the budget when the city is in boom times.  Mr. Corso explained that all city expenditures need to be backed by some type of revenue coming in and the concern is that structurally over time, and into the future, that revenue that is coming in that funds our expenses is growing at a much lower rate than the expenses that the city has committed to.  He added that even though the economy may still be growing, it’s growing at a much slower rate than the costs, mainly, of salary and retirement benefits and health benefits for employees.  Vice President Covington confirmed that there are 15 members of all ranks on the internal budget committee.  She also mentioned that she would really like to see a plan of action for having other departments use our facilities when they are not needed by the SFFD, as that was one of the reasons they went through the grueling accreditation process. 

 

Commissioner Hardeman thanked Mr. Corso for his very good report and appreciated the 104-page document that really is sort of the bible that contains a summary of revenues, expenses and all the detailed line items and he thinks it’s quite a wonderful document and leaves you without many questions.  He mentioned the 2005 mandate that was passed by the voters which requires the city to maintain and operate neighborhood firehouses and emergency apparatus at the same location and to the same extent as existed on January 1, 2004.  He also recommended encouraging firefighters to have an annual physical involving testing for certain cancers.

 

President Nakajo thanked Mr. Corso and Commissioner Hardemen for serving on the Budget Committee.

 

Vice President Covington Moved to approve the presented budget.  Commissioner Cleaveland seconded.  The motion passed unanimously.

 

There was no public comment.

 

7. CHIEF OF DEPARTMENT’S REPORT [Discussion]

REPORT FROM CHIEF OF DEPARTMENT

Report on current issues, activities and events within the Department since the Fire Commission meeting on January 23, 2019, including budget, academies, special events, communications and outreach to other government agencies and the public.

 

Chief Hayes-White reported on activities since the last meeting on January 23, 2019.  She stated that they are midway through this fiscal year budget and they are on track.  Regarding academies, she mentioned that the 125th class is in their third week, and two members were released during the EMS portion due to performance.  She announced that the Division of Training is working in conjunction with the EMS Division on an online training for H-8 per diem EMT’s, in addition they are planning on start dates for the H-3 Level 1 EMT academy, which they are projecting to be just after the beginning of the fiscal year in July and the 125th academy to begin sometime in the fall.  She touched on events she attended, including an HSOC meeting, a celebration of life with Engine 33 for retired Battalion Chief Al Waite, who was about three months short of his 100th birthday when he passed away late last year.  She acknowledged Lt. Baxter and his team for putting together a volunteer appreciation event which was very well attended.  She also attended the re-opening of Station 16 and thanked everyone who attended, the annual Veterans Leadership Symposium and Black History Month celebration.  She mentioned the major incident at Geary and Parker, a 3rd alarm fire and that crews did a very good job under incident commander Rex Hale. She also reported that this incident became an investigation conducted by the NTSB and the SFFD was named as a party to the investigation which she signed off on a confidential disclosure agreement and she designated Assistant Deputy Chief Mike Cochrane to represent the Department.  She mentioned the Neighbor Empowerment Network ceremony where they acknowledged NERT lifetime achievement award that went to Ms. Joanie Van Rijn.

 

Commissioner Cleaveland thanked Chief Hayes-White for her report and announced that she received an award for her outstanding service to the community for the past 15 years at the Chamber of Commerce breakfast.

 

There was no public comment.

 

REPORT FROM OPERATIONS

Report on overall field operations, including greater alarm fires, Emergency Medical Services, Bureau of Fire Prevention & Investigation, and Airport Division.

 

Chief Gonzales reported on activities for the month of January.    He mentioned that there was one greater alarm, a second alarm on 70 Liebig Street where crews encountered numerous obstacles due to hoarding.  He touched on other incidents including a first alarm at 1100 Connecticut, a surf rescue, a cliff rescue of a dog and a deck collapse at 1683 39th Avenue.  He stated that multiple outreach efforts are still ongoing about cliff and surf safety messages, bicyclist/pedestrian traffic safety messages, close your door before you doze, a campaign encouraging the closing of bedroom doors at night to increase your chance of survival and being rescued during a fire.  He showed a short video of community outreach, multi-agency training and SFO Division live fire training.

 

Commissioner Veronese expressed his concern with how long it took PG & E to turn off the gas at the incident at Geary and Parker and to make sure that the Department has a voice in the conversations that are taking place and to keep the Commission updated.  He asked that Chief Gonzales also add the total to the bottom of the non-homeless related call statistics on his next report. 

 

Commissioner Cleaveland asked if the department has a map of gas lines in the city.  Chief Gonzales replied no, but he would look into it.  Commissioner Cleaveland also confirmed that coastal safety signage can always be improved.  He also commended Chief Gonzales and Lt. Baxter for the fire safety fairs they have been putting on.

 

Commissioner Hardeman was also flabbergasted it took so long for PG & E to shut off the gas and found out that it’s a problem with not enough shut-off valves and all the precautions that they have to take once that happens and they are now learning that this process needs a big change.

 

Vice President Covington asked what the Department’s relationship is with the National Park Service.  Chief Gonzales stated that they have an MOU with the GGNRA that states the Department will respond to those areas they own, and they pay a certain amount for that.  Vice President Covington suggested reaching out to whoever is in charge at the GGNRA to get sufficient safety signage up.

 

 

8. COMMISSION REPORT [Discussion]

Report on Commission activities since last meeting on January 23, 2019.

 

Commissioner Hardeman stated that he attended the Budget Committee meeting and appreciates how everybody has their preferences, but he relies on the Chief and the command staff to do what’s right and in the best interest of the Department.

 

Commissioner Cleaveland gave a brief update on the CD1 interview process stating there were 36 qualified candidates and they will have interviewed 20 and they expect to have their recommendations sent over to the Mayor by the end of tomorrow evening.

 

Vice President Covington relayed that President Nakajo, who had to leave early is having ongoing discussions with the president and vice president of the Health Commission regarding a joint meeting of the officers of the SFFD Commission as well as the Health Commission.

 

There was no public comment.

 

9. CORRESPONDENCE RECEIVED

 

• Letter dated 1/23/19 from San Francisco Fire Fighters Local 798

 

There was no public comment.

 

10. AGENDA FOR NEXT AND FUTURE FIRE COMMISSION MEETINGS [Discussion]

Discussion regarding agenda for next and future Fire Commission meetings.

 

• Retreat update

• Update on MOU with Port on Station 35

• Peer Support update

• Update on MOU with Guardian of the City

• Cliff/Surf Task Force Resolution

• Amnesty for Edna

• Cancer Accord Resolution

 

Commissioner Veronese stated that he has been working on a cliff/surf task force resolution and will involve many agencies and he will get it to the Commission for consideration in the next week.  He also introduced an idea where the Department commit to buying PPE's and equipment when commercially available as long as they meet the standards of the Department that are free from cancer-causing chemicals.  He also brought up the issue of the cat at station 49 and thinks the Department should take a second look at animals in the Department and he thinks they play an important role in peer support.

 

There was no public comment.

 

11. ADJOURNMENT

 

Vice President Covington adjourned the meeting at 12:20 p.m.