The Nederland Fire Protection District Board of Directors inducted a new Board member during a regular meeting on Wednesday, July 28, 2021, at 7 p.m. The Board also discussed job descriptions for an administrative chief and an operational chief.

At a special meeting the previous week, the Board appointed Guy Falsetti to the Board following the resignation of Patrick Richardson, so this week the Board made it official. Board Chair Iain Irwin-Powell welcomed him to the Board. His term will end in May, when he can run for election for the next term.

Irwin-Powell introduced job descriptions for two chiefs, an administration chief and an operations chief, as the Board had agreed to in their June meeting. He said the Board needs to have one person in charge of the budget, while the operations chief relieves some pressure from the administrative chief.

The administration chief manages the Fire District’s administrative daily functions, develops and maintains administrative policy documents and guidelines for the continuing administrative functions of the department, maintains the management of the department’s records and communications, coordinates various administrative staff workloads, assists with the department’s budget creation, and tracks its purchasing activities.

The administration chief also provides or organizes the services of the Fire Marshal for plan review and inspection for the Town of Nederland and provides or organizes the role of fire investigator. As a member of the department’s management team, the administration chief coordinates activities with other Town, Regional, and State departments and the public.

The administration chief assists in finding and applying for grant funding for all aspects of the department’s activities and responds to emergency incidents as required. The chief provides public information via the department’s website, email, or other communication media regarding public health or emergency situations, both in the district and county; works cooperatively with the operations chief to ensure complete oversight of the organization, and informs the operations chief of relevant administrative functions to ensure business continuity.

The other chief, the operations chief, would direct the Fire District’s daily operations, develop and maintain an effective volunteer emergency responder program, provide direct supervision of shift captains and the department mechanics, and oversee the volunteer program. The operations chief would be responsible for emergency vehicle maintenance planning, inspection and maintenance scheduling, responding to emergency incidents as required, and work cooperatively with the administration chief to ensure complete oversight of the organization.

Irwin-Powell said this person “will take a lot of weight off” Fire Chief Rick Dirr. Board members said they were in favor of doing this, and the chief still answers to the Board. Chief Dirr cautioned that there could be a conflict with two chiefs.

Other Board members said the District has had a year’s worth of miscommunication, and added that an operations chief could be a recipe for mismanagement. The Board agreed to look into it further, and would like the opinion of Board Member and former chairman Henry Zurbrugg on this issue.

The next regular meeting of the Nederland Fire Protection Board of Directors will be on August 18, 2021, at 7 p.m.