Tom Osborne, an at large member and chairman of the Chelsea Area Fire Authority Board was unanimously reappointed to the board on March 16 during CAFA’s monthly meeting that took place via Zoom.
Linda Reilly from Lyndon Township was appointed as the alternate at large member, both by unanimous votes of the board for 2-year terms.
As part of its discussion about updating the CAFA bylaws, a lengthy discussion took place regarding the possibility of providing compensation for board members, especially for the additional time that is spent on specific fire board projects, such as contract negotiations, solidifying lease agreements, and other tasks undertaken by board members in addition to meetings.
Further investigation will take place to determine what other similar fire board members are paid and next month, it’s expected that two versions of the updated bylaws will be presented to the board for a vote. One will include a compensation provision and one will omit that provision.
Chief Rob Arbini has applied for two positions using the SAFER grant option (insert link to previous story) that will pay the salaries and benefits for these firefighters for three years. If awarded this federal money, the chief assured the board that there would not be any layoffs of those hired. It’s expected that he will be notified this summer about whether the grant request was approved by the Federal Government.
The board unanimously agreed to a lease agreement for Fire Station No. 1 in Chelsea and continues to negotiate lease agreements for the remaining two fire stations – Station 2 in Lima Township and Station 3 in Lyndon Township.
The chief also plans to begin conducting a needs assessment for the fire authority including needs for Station No. 1. The station was thought to have been built in 1963, and it was fine for a small volunteer fire department, but today, CAFA is a growing full-time one, which could include female firefighters in the future. Currently, there is nowhere to provide overnight accommodations for both male and female firefighters. In addition, there are both cosmetic as well as recurring issues with the firehouse — such as plumbing issues with the drains, concrete floors that are sinking and accessibility to the administrative offices, which are on the second floor.
It was suggested that a 5-year proforma be developed that would provide not only an assessment of the current fire authority needs and maintenance plans for the current Chelsea fire station but also looks at the future needs and associated costs involved in perhaps building a new fire station in Chelsea. The document would provide a timeline and thorough evaluation of what that might look like and could be modified as more information becomes available.
The next regular meeting of the CAFA board will take place via Zoom on April 20 at 9 a.m.
