Fire Commission - October 24, 2018

 

 

The Video can be viewed by clicking this link:  http://sanfrancisco.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=180&clip_id=31…

 

President Cleaveland called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m.

 

1. ROLL CALL

 

Commission President Ken Cleaveland Present

Commission Vice President Stephen Nakajo Excused

Commissioner Michael Hardeman Present

Commissioner Francee Covington Present

Commissioner Joe Alioto Veronese Present at 5:07 

 

Chief of Department Joanne Hayes-White Present

 

Mark Gonzales Deputy Chief - Operations

Jeanine Nicholson Deputy Chief --Administration

 

Dan DeCossio Prevention

Tony Rivera Support Services

Michael Cochrane Homeland Security

Andy Zanoff EMS

Joel Sato Division of Training

 

Assistant Chiefs

Brook Baker Division 2

Nicol Juratovac Division 3

 

 

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 October 31, 2018.

 

Commissioner Covington had a small change to add to her remarks in support of the Consent Decree.  Commissioner Hardeman Moved to approve the above meeting Minutes as amended.  Commissioner Covington Seconded.  Motion to approve above Minutes as amended was unanimous.

 

There was no public comment.

 

4. CHIEF OF DEPARTMENT’S REPORT [Discussion]

REPORT FROM CHIEF OF DEPARTMENT, JOANNE HAYES-WHITE

Report on current issues, activities and events within the Department since the Fire Commission meeting on October 10, 2018, including budget, academies, special events, communications and outreach to other government agencies and the public.

 

Chief Hayes-White reported on events since the last meeting on October 10, 2018.  Chief Hayes-White stated that in regard to the budget, they have finalized the closeout of the last fiscal year and that Mr. Corso will be reconvening the budget committee within the next four to six weeks to discuss preparation for next fiscal year's budget.  She mentioned that the Division of Training has been very busy and they are in the process of offering an officer's academy.  She mentioned that they are still targeting a class of 54 members for an H-2 Academy in January of 2019.  She also announced that she is committed to continuing to further define the selection and identification of a training facility and recently had a very good conversation with Naomi Kelly, City Administrator who is working toward the process related to a potential property swap between the Department and Pacific Gas and Electric in the India Basin neighborhood and they are currently performing a test fit to take a look and see if that property meets the Department’s needs.  Chief Hayes-White touched on recent activates she attended throughout the reporting period, including a meeting with the interim director of the Department of Public Health, Mr. Greg Wagerner in which they shared goals relating to the provisions of pre-hospital care in the City.  She described the patient reunion of Marcial Pacek who was born in 1990 at the Bay Bridge Toll Plaza and was delivered by now member Chris Posey who was working for an ambulance company back in 1990.  She also attended the monthly Labor Management meeting; the Great ShakeOut California Drill and the American Legion Awards function where Firefighter DeWayne Eckerdt, Firefighter/Paramedic Matt Land and firefighter Steve Kelly were recognized and received awards for outstanding service to the community.  Chief Hayes-White acknowledged NERT activities and Captain Erica Arteseros for the great work that she does in coordinating the drills as well as all the San Francisco Fire Department members that are NERT instructors.  She announced that she intends to retire in the springtime and is very much looking forward to it and is very proud of the accomplishments she has achieved over her 29-year career in the Department and she is also very grateful.  She commended all the members who responded to the third alarm fire at the high-rise building near the Embarcadero for the tremendous job they did in containing the fire as well as the members who responded to the house fire in the Sunset District where there was sadly, one fatality   She thanked the members of the Stress Unit for reaching out to those members who were affected by the fatality.

 

Commissioner Veronese thanked the Chief for her report and stated the commission will have plenty of opportunity between now and the time she retires to honor her.  He also agreed that the members executed flawlessly at the high-rise third alarm fire and he was glad he was able to go into the building to check the damage and added that those firefighters who climbed up those 16 flights of stairs with their gear and hoses was pretty stunning and his hat is off to every single engine and truck company that showed up to that fire.  He mentioned that the reason the Department is so successful with fires like that is because of the experience and knowledge and the leadership that the Chief has brought to the Department over the years of her service and that it has been an honor for him to work with her.  He was glad to hear that they are making progress on a potential training facility site.

 

Commissioner Hardeman thanked Chief Hayes-White for her report and on all the training she reported on.  He mentioned that he saw the third alarm fire on TV and thought it was wonderful to see firefighters climbing all the way to the top and commended Chief Postel for doing a great job at that fire as well as his good interview.  Commissioner Hardeman thought the Chief's retirement transition she chose was brilliant and that it makes it easy on everybody, not just her staff, but the commissioners and the mayor to have time to contemplate who the next chief will be.

 

Commissioner Covington thanked Chief Hayes-White for her report and congratulated her on her retirement announcement and she agreed that it will make for a smoother transition, particularly in regard to a new training facility.  She also commended the members who fought the third alarm fire on Washington Street.  She added that in regard to the Officer’s Academy, it is important to have a good firefighting force and that the Department has very good trainers.  Commissioner Covington acknowledged that she would like a hard copy of the Public Works pre-design planning study done for the training facility and confirmed that a total of 9.7 acres was potentially available at the site they are studying but may not best suit the department's needs.  Commissioner Covington stated that her concentration is on the fact that the Department has gone through the process of being an accredited Training Department and she thinks it would be very good to have the space to have classes for other departments as well.  She confirmed that the Department has a total of about six acres with Treasure Island and 19th & Folsom combined.  She stated that she wants to make sure that we are forward thinking on this new facility and that we don’t outgrow it in single digit years.

 

Commissioner Hardeman stated his opinion about other departments using our training facilities and that his preference would be not to schedule anything that would interfere with the ability of the SFFD and their training needs.  Commissioner Covington responded that she did not want people to get the impression that the SFFD would be second, but that definitely the SFFD would come first in its own training facility.  

 

President Cleaveland thanked the Chief for her report and thanked her for her service as one of the longest-serving fire chiefs in the country and he looks forward to working closely with her on the transition.  He also acknowledged the great work done by members of the department on containing the third alarm fire on Washington Street.  In regard to the training facility, President Cleaveland confirmed that the cost for just the state-of-the-art facility, not including the land is estimated to be a little over 110 million dollars based upon the consultant’s work including props and the hope is to get it on the 2020 ESER Bond.

 

There was no public comment.

 

REPORT FROM ADMINISTRATION, DEPUTY CHIEF JEANINE NICHOLSON

Report on the Administrative Divisions, Fleet and Facility status, Finance, Support Services, Homeland Security and Training within the Department.

 

Chief Nicholson reported on events for the month of September 2018.  

She reported on the Physician's Office, Investigative Services Bureau, and the Assignment Office.  She touched on recent promotions and retirements.  Regarding Support Services, she mentioned that Station 35, the new floating fire station, they are working with the Port, Planning and Public Works regarding the approval of documents for SEQUA and it is on track.  She announced that the new Ambulance Deployment Facility has been turned over to the contractor SJ Amoroso and groundbreaking is set for November 28th and the scheduled opening is set for late 2020, that Station 16 is nearing completion and they are working on other ancillary issues and the completion date has been pushed back from the November 16th date, and that Station 5's final completion will most likely be late February 2020.  She added that Chief Rivera and his team have been diligently working on the ambulance specifications and that the mobile command vehicle is due for some upgrades.  She touched on the Division of Training and all the good work they are doing, the Fire Reserves, NERT,  and Home Land Security. 

 

Commissioner Veronese confirmed that the Moose Boat jet dock will be docked at the Saint Francis Yacht Club.

 

Commissioner Hardeman thanked Chief Nicholson for her thorough report and asked if Chief Rivera would present the video on Station 5 at an upcoming meeting as he thought it was fascinating.

 

President Cleaveland confirmed that the antique rigs are still stored on Treasure Island

 

There was no public comment.

 

5. RESOLUTION 2018-02 [Discussion and possible action]

Discussion and possible action regarding proposed Resolution 2018-02, recommending that the San Francisco Fire Department expand the duties and rename the Stress Unit to Peer Support Services.

 

Public Comment:  Captain Daniel Griffin spoke in support of the Resolution and thanked everyone in attendance for the unwavering support of the Stress Unit as well as members of the Department.  He added that he truly believes that Commissioner Alioto-Veronese’s resolution could help bolster the Stress Unit in a way that could really help the members.

 

Commissioner Veronese thanked Captain Griffin for coming and stated that he is confident that the Resolution will save lives.  He read the resolution into the record which is attached here:  https://sf-fire.org/file/7170

 

Commissioner Covington Moved to approve the above Resolution.  Commissioner Hardeman Seconded.  Motion to approve was unanimous.

 

6. RESOLUTION 2018-04 [Discussion and possible action]

Discussion and possible action regarding proposed Resolution 2018-04, recommending that the Board of Supervisors authorize the San Francisco Fire Department to accept and expend Fiscal Year 2017 Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program funding in the amount of $2,733,591 from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for the purchase of defibrillator monitors and rescue tools for the Department.

 

Maureen Conefrey, Commissioner Secretary read the attached resolution into the record:  https://sf-fire.org/sites/default/files/COMMISSION/Fire%20Commission%20…

 

Commissioner Veronese Moved to approve the above Resolution.  Commissioner Hardeman Seconded.  Motion to approve was unanimous.

 

There was no public comment.

 

7. RESOLUTION 2018-05 [Discussion and possible action]

Discussion and possible action regarding proposed Resolution 2018-05, recommending that the Board of Supervisors authorize the San Francisco Fire Department to accept and expend Fiscal Year 2018 Port Security Grant Program funding in the amount of $399,562 from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for the purchase of a new rescue boat.

 

Maureen Conefrey, Commissioner Secretary read the attached resolution into the record:  https://sf-fire.org/sites/default/files/COMMISSION/Fire%20Commission%20…

 

Commissioner Covington Moved to approve the above Resolution.  Commissioner Veronese Seconded.  Motion to approve was unanimous.

 

There was no public comment.

 

8. 1823 SENIOR ADMINISTRATIVE ANALYST -- GRANT WRITER CLASSIFICATION JOB ANNOUNCEMENT [Discussion and possible action]

Overview of Draft Job Announcement.

 

Mark Corso explained the job description stating that it was for the Department's grant writer position which was approved in the fiscal year budget and they selected the 1823 Classification as there is no formal specific grant writer classification in the City's database and they felt it was the most appropriate class as many other departments use the 1823 Senior Administrative Analyst class for their grant positions.  He added that it is a high-level analytical position and he anticipates those skills would be very appropriate for what they are looking for in a grant writer.  He added that the minimum qualifications that are listed are standard citywide, but they have the ability to amend the desired qualifications and experience portion of the application, including expanding it to say relevant grant experience. 

 

Commissioner Covington thanked Mr. Corso for updating the description of the announcement and stated that she is more interested in the person’s ability to write a persuasive grant application and to get the funds, rather than having a master’s degree and she thinks requiring an applicant to have a master’s degree may be a deterrent for people to apply.  She asked to meet with Mr. Corso to further discuss what she would like on the announcement. 

 

Chief Hayes-White agreed that the way it was laid out is confusing and is done by the Department of Human Resources and confirmed that it’s not a requirement that you have to have a master’s degree and that you can substitute work experience for some of the education requirements.

 

Commissioner Covington confirmed that the Grant's Committee would be made up with members in various representatives from all operational divisions in the department in addition to Chief of Support Services, Chief of Homeland Security, Deputy Chief of Administration, Chief of Training, Mr. Corso as well as Fire Prevention, EMS and other discipline’s and would meet at a minimum quarterly and depending on the certain grant time frames, the meetings can be adjusted.

 

Commissioner Hardeman thanked Mr. Corso for all the time and effort he has put into the position.

 

There was no public comment.

 

9. COMMISSION REPORT [Discussion]

Report on Commission activities since last meeting on October 10, 2018.

 

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.

 

• DHR to present on Process for Search for COD

• ADF presentation

• Retreat action Items

• Coastline resolution

• Chiles settlement

• 2019 meeting calendar

• Strategic plan

• Amendments to discipline rules

• AB 3115 update

• Mou w/ GOTC

• Cancer Prevention Foundation

• Chief’s appraisal

• Drone policy

• Training facility Search

 

11. ADJOURNMENT

President Cleaveland adjourned the meeting at 6:56 p.m.