SOUTH ORANGE / MAPLEWOOD, NJ — Following a presentation from Manitou Inc. regarding possibly merging the Maplewood and South Orange fire departments, representatives from the two towns unanimously agreed to move forward to achieve that vision. The presentation was given at a joint public meeting on Thursday, Oct. 26, at the South Orange Performing Arts Center.
The detailed report included an independent review of each fire department as well as a list of recommendations regarding the feasibility of merging the two departments; specific examples of how services could be improved and what cost-saving measures are reasonable were cited in the presentation given by Manitou’s Charles Jennings. According to the report, having a merged fire department that is governed through a committee composed of representatives from both towns would save the towns money and improve service. Additionally, it would be a logical step forward, considering the many services the two towns already share.
Though it is clear from the report that the South Orange Fire Department has more areas where it can improve administration and services than the Maplewood Fire Department does, the overall picture is also clear that both towns would benefit from merging the fire departments.
“Both agencies as they currently are cannot send the recommended 13 to 14 personnel to a fire without reaching out to other communities for help, and the expectations for compliance and regulation will become more burdensome every year,” Jennings said in his presentation. “While Maplewood has the administrative capacity and a well-developed IT system as well as dedicated staff members to do these tasks, South Orange does not. Maplewood has a very well developed training system, and with the long history of collaboration between Maplewood and South Orange, it makes it easier advancing the goal of enhanced service between the two towns.”
The report noted specific benefits of a merger related to the efficiency of the departments, including: reducing the administrative burden, which would free up more time for training and prevention activities; more firefighters on an initial alarm; improved recordkeeping; and reduced overall staffing without affecting the minimum number of personnel on duty.
“These two communities present a near perfect case for consolidation; none of the usual pitfalls are present here,” Jennings said at the conclusion of his report.
The public comment portion of the joint meeting was led by MFD Chief Michael Dingelstedt, whose comments made clear that, while he agreed with some of the suggestions, he felt that there was a great deal of information missing from the report about the operating procedures in South Orange.
“As chief of Maplewood’s fire department, I agree with having a supervisory board and more firefighters, but there seems to be many things missing from section five of the report — the budget information for South Orange, including overtime, salary costs — and it says that there was no review or analysis due to lack of documentation,” he said. “It’s difficult for me to endorse a plan that lacks so much critical financial data.”
“South Orange is severely understaffed and, without knowing the outcome of this report, we have been very frugal with our spending,” South Orange Village President Collum said in response to these comments. “I don’t want to apologize for this; South Orange just isn’t at the same point as Maplewood in regard to our fire department and it is something that we have been actively addressing.”
Dingelstedt also expressed his concern that, since the SOFD financial information is not available for review, the report featured estimated numbers in some places for its analysis of Maplewood’s operations.
“To some degree, the estimates can be misleading and the language can be softened up, but we have absolute confidence in our estimates,” Jennings responded.
“Our main concern is labor, and our priority is the residents,” Christopher Ariemma, president of Maplewood Local 25, said. “We would ask to be included in the conversations; we want to work with you.”
Members of both governing bodies expressed some concerns about the report, based on the recommendations for both the individual fire departments and the merger efforts.
“We need four people to send out a truck, and we only have three in South Orange right now. I would also suggest that the working group give the public updates of their progress on a quarterly basis,” South Orange Trustee Mark Rosner said.
Maplewood Committeeman Frank McGehee commended the Maplewood firefighters for attending the meeting, and thanked them for their dedication and commitment to the community. South Orange Trustee Walter Clarke proposed having one email address to answer all public questions and concerns because community members may not be aware of which governing body members are involved in the group that is working to plan a merger.
“We’re far away from the finish line. The towns have to realize that there are individual costs associated with certain things like inspections,” Maplewood Mayor Vic DeLuca said. “No big conversations have been had because we were waiting on this report for a year, and now we have it and we can move forward.”
Photos by Shanee Frazier
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