Footing the Bill
Fire departments in the county have bought the new federally mandated radios, a project that came with a nearly $14 million price tag.
“We had to have a plan,” Scott Goehring, fire chief for the Harmony Fire District said. “Most of us just don't have it lying around.”
Emergency services, including fire police and EMS departments, received a financial break in June when county commissioners voted to cover 75 percent of the costs for end-user equipment. That left the services to pay for 25 percent of the bill.
How much the departments had to contribute to the purchase of the needed equipment varied on their size. The bills ranged from around $49,000 for the largest department to about $14,000 for the smallest.
All managed to meet their financial obligations.
“A lot of these fire departments are struggling,” said Steve Bicehouse, director of emergency services for Butler County, noting troublesome trends in recruiting volunteer firefighters. “Certainly, the county didn't want to be responsible for fire departments closing their doors.”
Bicehouse, who also is the fire chief for Evans City Volunteer Fire Department, said the county continues to work on building the new system's infrastructure.
“We had some delays related to towers,” Bicehouse said.
He said some of the sites they had considered created more problems than solutions.
“Before every site built, you need to do a structural analysis,” Bicehouse said. “We had two of them that would not be able to do that without significant capital costs to the county.”
Bicehouse said the upgrades trickle down to the department level, where equipment — for example, the radios and control stations — need to be replaced to pair properly with the county's new infrastructure. He said one new fire radio costs about $2,405.
“We started this process knowing it was a significant financial commitment for all our emergency services,” he said.
Paying the billCranberry Township had the highest payment of all volunteer fire departments in the county, replacing two control stations, nine mobiles and 55 portable radios. The county contributed $145,644 and the department paid $48,548 for the devices.“We were able to cover the costs necessary,” said Jeff Gooch, fire risk reduction coordinator for Cranberry Township Volunteer Fire Company. “Cranberry, especially the fire side, is funded through tax money that has provided us with the financial resources that others don't have.”Gooch said the county took the lead in the upgrades since the mandate began forcing the changes in 2014 and kept the departments up-to-date with changes.“We knew it was coming, so we were able to prepare for it,” Gooch said.Smaller departments have smaller bills, but they also don't receive as much tax money.The lowest amount paid by a fire department was Winfield Township at $13,573, which was followed by others, such as North Washington, Petrolia, Prospect and Eau Claire, all of which had contributions in the $15,000 range.“Our cost isn't as high as some of the bigger places,” said Ryan Enscoe, assistant chief for North Washington Volunteer Fire Department. “We got some financial assistance from Washington Township.”Enscoe said his department appreciated the county's financial support.“They didn't have to do that,” he said.But it's also the little things that add up.Enscoe said the purchase only includes the base equipment — accessories or additional units would cost extra.“We're hoping to get some grant money to buy the accessories, like chargers and headsets,” Enscoe said.Harmony Fire District was another department with a big order. The county covered $110,735, and the department paid $36,912.Goehring said Harmony firefighters were able to find other ways to help fund their portion of the project.“We used fire department funds and supplemented that with a (Department of Conservation and Natural Resources) grant,” Goehring said.
New equipmentThere will be an adjustment period for some firefighters, but the new gear is not completely foreign, according to Ryan Hanchosky, chief of the Slippery Rock Volunteer Fire and Rescue Team, which paid $29,657 toward its purchase.Hanchosky said the team's work with departments across county lines has given his firefighters some hands-on experience with the new technology.“We've been to a couple of fires and assisted in Scott Township and used some of their radios,” Hanchosky said. “I don't think it'll be anything major to get used to.”Slippery Rock Borough and Slippery Rock Township helped the department with some of the cost, according to Hanchosky.“I think the new system is going to be an upgrade,” Hanchosky said. “It's just going to take a while for it to get up to 100 percent.”Bicehouse said finishing the upgrades could take another six months.“We're looking at going live on June 1 with the new system,” he said.While waiting for the infrastructure, the fire departments should receive their equipment, according to Bicehouse.“Of course, the equipment has to be programmed and it has to be tested with our system,” he said. “We actually will drive around, kind of like the commercial you've seen — 'Can you hear me now?'”Bicehouse said the county won't test every radio, but it will test a couple per department.“It'll be there, it just won't be activated until we have everything else done,” he said.Bicehouse said the upgrades will boost functionality to their system.“As a fire chief, I'm excited and looking forward to the new features that we'll have,” he said. “It's going to have more Internet activity with more mutual partners. I think we'll have a significant increase in coverage.”In June, firefighters will see if the nearly $14 million price tag and all the infrastructure work will be worth it.“I think long-term, everybody will see the benefits,” Bicehouse said. “It's just a tough pill to swallow.”
