MEMORANDUM
To: Mayor and Council
From: Councilmember Schaefer
Re: Fire Committee
Date: March 1, 2006
Due to scheduling conflicts, we could not have a formal committee meeting. I did meet with Chief Vail concerning the purchase of a new Horton Type III A Ambulance and the status of the hiring process for the new Firefighter/Paramedic. I though it important for everyone to have a status report on these two issues.
Horton Type III A Ambulance
There will be an Ordinance authorizing the purchase of a Horton Type III A Ambulance from the state joint purchasing program. The amount which is from the state bid is $130,964.20. Options which are not included in the state bid price total $15,178.00. The amount of $150,000.00 was in the budget for this purchase. The actual price will be $146,142.20. The new ambulance will not be delivered for several months. The Mayor, Chief Vail and I concur in the recommendation that the old Ambulance be sold to Elmwood Place for a nominal price.
Hiring Process for the New Firefighter/Paramedic
There were 130 eligible candidates who submitted applications. Of these, 95 took the written examination administered by Scarlet Oaks. 79 of the 95 who took the test scored 70% or above making them eligible for the Candidate Physical Ability Test. The 79 applicants with passing scores include women and minority candidates.
The next step is the Candidate Physical Ability Test. The orientation for the test will be on March 9, 10, and 11, 2006. Training sessions will occur on 7 consecutive Thursdays beginning the evening of the March council meeting. The Candidate Physical Ability Test will be held at the Great Oaks Campus on April 29, 2006 beginning at 9:00 a.m.
The Fire Department conducted a survey concerning the manner in which each candidate learned of the position being open. 27 saw the advertisement in the Enquirer or on its website; word of mouth by a friend, relative or colleague accounted for 27 applications as well. The Evendale Website was the manner of notice for 20 applicants. Bulletin board postings at other fire departments, vocational schools, hospital accounted for 13 applicants. The remaining 8 candidates who responded to the survey reported learning of the opening on other firefighting related websites. No one reported learning of the position from the Cincinnati Herald, notice to churches, radio station advertisements, or Cincinnatijobs.com.
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