Consolidation of the Ketchum and Sun Valley fire departments and Ketchum Rural Fire District could be a great money saver. Or, it could be a big waste of time.
City and fire officials met Tuesday, Sept. 12, to review consultants' consolidation study proposals. The top three or four out of seven consultants will be interviewed Sept. 29. Once one is selected, the bid winner could come out with a recommendation on the matter by February.
Tuesday's meeting attendees were Ketchum Mayor Randy Hall; Sun Valley Mayor Jon Thorson; the two city administrators, Ron LeBlanc and Virginia Egger; Ketchum Fire Chief Mike Elle and Sun Valley Fire Chief Jeff Carnes; Sun Valley City Councilman Blair Boand; and Ketchum City Councilman Ron Parsons.
"We went over seven proposals ... and determined there were some clear choices," Parsons said Wednesday.
Bids range from $40,000 to $60,000 for the study.
The consultants would study the feasibility and worth of consolidating the three fire agencies.
Their review would cover everything "from soup to nuts," Parsons said, including economics, dispatch, training, response, personnel, stations, equipment and budgets.
The agencies are considering consolidating for economies of scale, long-term planning, efficiencies and quality of service, Parsons said.
"A lot of it is to try to make sure we don't duplicate areas," he said. Fire stations, for example, are very expensive to build, insure and maintain. A station may be unnecessary if there's another one close by.
"Anything from East Fork north they're going to look at," Parsons said. "They'll take an in-depth look on how you do business and give direction on what's feasible, and how and if you consolidate, who does what."
A primary issue consultants will look at is housing, Parsons added.
"They'll ask, 'What do we have and what will we need in the future?'" he said. "We're going to look at that very closely."
Although Parsons said he hopes the study leads to consolidation of north county fire and rescue services, there's no guarantee that will be the recommendation.
"It doesn't mean at the end of the day this is going to make sense," he said. He noted that consolidation could take place on some levels without a complete merger.
Interviews are scheduled for Friday, Sept. 29. Officials could award a bid within a few days of that, Parsons said.
Most consultants' timeline is estimated at four months.
"They lay it on our lap," Parsons said. "Then it's a political decision. It really comes down to that."
The Ketchum and Sun Valley fire departments were part of a joint fire-fighting practice exercise conducted last weekend in Ketchum. Photo by David N. Seelig
