The Highlands Ranch Metro District will continue contracting
fire protection services from Littleton despite doubts that a new
agreement would be reached.
The Littleton City Council passed a revised intergovernmental
agreement at its Jan. 3 meeting, continuing the city’s longtime
deal with the Metro District and the Littleton Fire Protection
District.
The Metro District reviewed the possibility of breaking away
from Littleton Fire Rescue after commissioning a 2010 study to
examine its options for fire protection services going forward.
Littleton Fire Rescue has served the 220,000 residents of the
three entities included in the intergovernmental agreement for more
than 20 years. Negotiations during the past year resulted in a
revised contract to keep the partnership alive. With Littleton’s
acceptance Jan. 3, all three entities have approved the new
agreement.
“My thanks to everyone involved for their good faith in
negotiating a new agreement. It will continue to serve our
communities well into the future with the most cost-effective,
professional fire and EMS services available,” Littleton Mayor
Debbie Brinkman said.
The revised contract includes six key changes. Notably, it
establishes minimum response times of 10 minutes to the Metro
District and 9 minutes, 30 seconds to the Littleton Fire Protection
District, a goal Littleton Fire Rescue must meet on 90 percent of
calls.
A joint review committee will be formed to discuss issues at
monthly meetings.
Additionally, the funding formula was revamped with the goal of
lowering administrative costs, all fire engines and medical units
must be staffed and equipped at the Advanced Life Support level,
and every shift must have a minimum of 36 full-time personnel on
the clock.
“This is significant for our community because it assures our
current excellent level of service into the future and ensures a
fair distribution of the costs,” Metro District General Manager
Terry Nolan said.
The Littleton Fire Protection District owns three fire stations
while the Metro District and the City of Littleton both own two.
Ownership of Station 16 near Chatfield Lake is split three ways.
Firefighters and support staff are employed by the city.
The Littleton City Council sets the fire budget every year, with
the districts only able to make recommendations. The budget has
remained steady between $15.5 million and $16 million since 2008,
with projected 2012 expenditures at $16 million.
The 2010 Metro District study came on the heels of a 2008
Operational Efficiency Study that found numerous areas Littleton
Fire Rescue needed to improve upon, such as communication between
the three entities and defining their specific roles. The report
states relationships between the three parties were sometimes
strained.
Like its predecessor, the newly approved agreement will remain
in effect until any of the three parties decides to terminate it
with 12 months notice.
“This contract is not the end of a process,” said David
Oppenheim, board chairman of the Littleton Fire Protection
District. “It is a tool for us to continue to work together to
ensure that our constituents receive the very best fire protection
and emergency medical services at a reasonable and affordable
cost.”
The fire protection district includes a chunk of west Centennial
and parts of unincorporated Douglas and Jefferson counties.
