Title
Notice/Advertisement Title: Public Safety and Criminal Justice Committee Division of Fire Apparatus Review
Contact Name: Pedro Mejia
Contact Telephone Number: 614-645-3526
Contact Email Address: pdmejia@columbus.gov
Body
Division of Fire Apparatus Review
06.25.2026, 2:30pm, Columbus City Hall, 90 W Broad St, Columbus, OH,43215
On Thursday, June 25th at 2:30pm Council Member Emmanuel Remy chaired a Public Hearing to discuss the status of the Division of Fire Apparatus and building maitneance.
Council Members in attendance: Remy, Dorans, Ross, Wyche, & President Hardin
Meeting Minutes
CALL TO ORDER:
2:35 PM
INTRODUCTION
Chair Remy introduced himself and Vice Chair, thanked members of public, Division of Fire, and city staff in attendance. Defined germane term “apparatus” in the context of the Division of Fire. Outlined his aim for a productive discussion around the integrity of the fire fleet and facilities, and plans for how to improve the fleet status/quality. Encouraged fellow Councilmembers to keep questioning to the relevant domain due to hearing time constraints.
President Hardin referenced family background in the fire service and his strong commitment to ensuring fire personnel have necessary resources. Stated that Council’s goal is transparency and oversight, not grilling of officials. Emphasized Columbus’ rapid growth and the need to develop public safety infrastructure to meet that growth. Hears concerns from fire personnel on equipment readiness and safety, compounding to affect morale.
Steve Stein, President of Columbus Firefighters’ Union, IAFF Local 67 referenced his union’s asks for a realistic growth and maintenance plan to ensure Division of Fire can meet the needs of Columbus’ continuing growth. Urges adherence to Matrix report and the implementation of a strategic fleet replacement plan. States that his union is ready to be a partner in these efforts and thanks his members in attendance.
Chair Remy introduces speakers from the administration in attendance.
PRESENTATION Overview of Fire Apparatus, Facilities, Mutual Aid
Director Pishotti delineated the broad functions of the Division of Fire and the scale of daily operations needed to provide fire/EMS services to Columbus residents. Stated that her team would discuss ongoing maintenance and replacement plans for fire fleet - recent and planned capital investments, facilities upgrades, and long-term plans. Introduced specific topics that fellow presenters would cover. Discussed factors such as fleet costs and manufacturing times that have affected replacement schedule.
Director Long mentions that while majority of ladders and engines are within industry standard for replacement, major challenges have been hyperinflation driving up equipment costs and increasing delivery times.
AC Smith discusses recent purchases of new fire stations, apparatus, and bomb squad expansions to cite the investments the Division of Fire has made. States that older apparatus goes into the reserve fleet, used when newer apparatus is not available. Ratio of frontline fleet to reserve fleet is 3:1. Presents numbers on apparatus in good standing, needing replacement, and nearing end of life. These criteria are based on national standards. Majority of ladders are in good standing - and while 5 are not, 3 replacements for those are scheduled for delivery in next two weeks. Overviews upcoming orders and requests before council. Prioritizing replacement of frontline medics due to lower quality than ladders or engines.
Director Long highlights “ASE Blue Seal” certification that Division of Fleet Management holds, meaning their technicians reached a certain high standard of qualification. Shares the Division’s “Apparatus Replacement Program”, which includes how many vehicles are on order or projected to be purchased in the coming cycles.
Positive fleet benchmarks: Columbus insources more maintenance than industry average, saving money and shortening turnaround. Engine ages are below industry average
Negative fleet benchmarks: Ambulance vehicle ages are above industry average
Director Long highlights that Industry Standard Prices have increased over $4 million in one category alone since COVID.
[Chair Remy] Asks about numbers of vehicles on frontline, in reserve, and out of operation.
[AC Smith] There’s nothing out there on the street right now that isn’t operating.
[Chair Remy] What date has department set for when all vehicles will be up to industry standard?
[Administrator Reagan] 3-5 years from now.
[Chair Remy] Do the numbers you’ve shared suggest that we are keeping our reserve fleet for too long?
[Admin. Reagan] Yes. Cites high maintenance costs.
[President Hardin] My understanding is that the division’s plan for requests that go before Council is based on a critical fleet analysis, can that be shared with council and how far off is it from this year’s plan and next year’s plan?
[Deputy Speaks]:
[Chair Remy]: Director Long, for the community can you explain the Bond Sale Process, and when these requests are made?
[Dir. Long]: We got of schedule during COVID, and they have shifted towards a layered bond sale, and with additional lead times there is a substantial delay
[Chair Remy]: these leadetimes are getting shorter?
[Dorans]: Thinknig about how the capital budget comes to council to be approved, what are the expectation of what we should see so we are not trying to maintenance ourselves out of the problem
[Dir.Long]: We are in an inflationary environment so we are not able to gain when the maitenance costs are so high. He states the costs are not coming down
[Dorans]: There are a lot fewer manufacturers, what are we doing to look at different manufacturers? Are we trying to broaden that base and what does it look like?
[Reagan]: Standardization is the key to ensuring smooth operations, and they use the manufacturers that Fire wants to use
[Smith]: We have great relationships with the few manufacturers that we use, and they are also close
[Remy]: There is a rule that they need to have a service facility within a specific distance?
[Reagan]: confirmed Remy’s assumtion and added on that they have had less than ideal experiences with other manufacturers
Presentation continues..
Director Long discusses the Facilities Management Division and outlines projects that are planned for future years. He continues by explaining the office of Construction Management and their roles and responsibilities. The Roof Replacement Program overseen by the Office of Construction Management. He discusses the replacement schedule for Fire Station 18 in the Fall of 2026 for partial/replacement. Fire Station 19 will also have a full roof replacement with work to begin later this year.
[Chair Remy]:
[Dir. Long]: Firefighters can put in work orders, sometimes there are phone calls.
[Tracy Smith] There is a process. Anytime 24 a day they can fill out a Daily Work Order, if it is an emergency they can call, they do inspections every single year once a year with facilities maintenance to locate any needs they feel the need to accelerate.
[Dir. Long]: We will get that to you
[Chair Remy]: How many work orders are open?
[Dir. Long]: We can get that over to all of you quickly
[Dorans]: Were there work orders open on station 18 when the roof collapsed, were the orders related to the roof
[Tracy Smith]: There were multiple work orders on that roof. They opened another work order when her team saw the state of the roof
[Chair Remy]: Was 6 years the normal life span of a roof
[Dir. Long]: Not sure. Flat Roofs Usually have a shorter life span.
Presentation continues...
Tracy Smith states the apparatus currently in production and the ones legislated for 2026.
[Chair Remy]: Can you provide a list of the apparatus needing to be replaced?
Tracy Smith agrees to share that information.
Micheal Halloran begins the section of the presentation on mutual aid. The objective is to reduce the response time to emergencies. Explains a software that helps assign which station to dispatch. A little over 13,000 calls involved some kind of mutual aid into Columbus either partial or Exclusive. Shows a heat map of mutual aid intensity. The vast majority of mutual aid occurs in areas of the city where the city has grown adjacent to neighboring fire stations. He shows a second map to illustrate which jurisdictions are adjacent to each other. Each jurisdiction has to make their own decisions about mutual aid. He shows another map of a different area illustrating the adjacent jurisdictions and what is look like geographically. He shows a fourth map of the east side up by New Albany and where station 36 is located. He shows a fifth map and analysis from 2024 to demonstrate where to put station 36, titled “New Fire Station Sustainability Model”.
After they determine where to put the stations they need to understand the cost. Halloran explain the breakdown of costs for a new station without the purchase of the land. He walks through what each expansion cost includes and what it does not.
[President Hardin]: Some other communities have built fire station under what ours are coming in at. How do we assess how much the station will cost?
[Halloran]: There are design sessions within the division of Fire which explain the needs of the station, and what it might need if the community grows
[Dir. Long]: We try to tailor it to the needs of the station. Discuss what will have less operational costs
[President Hardin]: Is this an area where we could tighten up so we can get more stations up?
[Dir.Long]: short answer is yes, we could be more fiscally responsible while still meeting the needs of the community
Presentation continues...
Halloran goes over other cities with mutual aid agreements, including suburbs of LA, DC, Atlanta, Phoenix, Miami.
[Chair Remy] With the number of mutual aid calls, is this an indication that Columbus is under capacity?
[Halloran] It’s an indication of our rapid growth and geographic location of stations. Also policy considerations, as not every 911 call requires the same response. The outcome doesn’t always depend on the seconds and minutes of the Fire/EMS response. We all are attempting to expand the number of stations so as to reduce the mutual aid.
[Chair Remy]: Is there a plan for Station 38 and 39 to be built?
[Halloran] The report indicated the long-term budget plans for what will be built. Now admin and council will work together to allocate funding for that.
[Chair Remy]: Does the voter-approved bond package include the money for new stations to be built?
[Halloran] We have that authority, but it’s still subject to year-by-year capacity. It’s a balancing act, with the needs of the entire city, in partnership with the Council.
[Chair Remy]: What are the response times when a situation is handled by mutual aid versus entirely by CFD?
[Halloran] I don’t have that information off the top of my head.
[President Hardin] Do these other municipalities budget our runs into their budgets and are those conversations we have with them?
[Halloran] I’ve heard rumors to that affect. Several jurisdictions have certain restrictions on mutual aid, to how many apparatus and which areas.
[President Hardin] We don’t create the budget, but we need benchmarks to hold the administration accountable. Is the Matrix report that benchmark, to hold all of us accountable?
[Halloran] The matrix report is a good guide, but things are constantly dynamic, such as the inflation. Administration, Council, the Auditor need to work together on continued improvement.
[Pro Tem Dorans]: Who is evaluating our progress against the Matrix report, against our city’s growth? Who is evaluating that and ensuring needs are reflected in the capital improvement plan?
[Halloran] I’d like to thank the GIS folks at Fire. We combine data streams: pop. Growth, individuals with disabilities, distance from main roadways, but I don’t know how frequently it’s being done. I can put that on our cadence to monitor. There is a process where we will evaluate annexation, future needs, and it becomes a package for Council’s approval process. As our technological capabilities improve we should have a much clearer picture for our predictive analysis.
[Speaks] With the great work you’re doing on zoning, we want to grow vertically in the city, not grow out. Having more density in the city, which will affect fire response.
[CM Ross]: Around station 15, we’ve seen immense growth in that area. Far more traffic on Livingston, firefighters parking at nearby restaurants. It sounds like, Director, you are considering that in this new data collection.
[Chair Remy] Back to mutual aid, are these other municipalities billing at the same level when they come into our communities?
[Halloran]: I can’t quote exactly what they are charging.
[Chair Remy] I wonder if we’re charging 500 and they are charging 700, could we legislate that all Columbus residents would be charged at the same rate?
[Speaks] We are blessed with both breadth and depth. These municipalities don’t have bomb squads or hazmat. We share expertise, so it can be mutually beneficial.
[Chair Remy] Stations like 18 that are only engines and the house, they might be out of service when there’s only 3 people are on an engine and they get called on a paramedic run. What do I tell my residents when that happens, as opposed to stations where there’s more coverage? They’re saying look, 18 can’t take runs sometimes, so what do I say to them?
[AC Smith]: Even if the paramedics are out on a run, the engine staff can provide advanced life capabilities.
[Chair Remy] Are residents all safe in their neighborhoods, given maintenance concerns?
[AC Smith] While there have been a few occasions when proper availability isn’t there, but we have the tools at every station to respond.
[Chair Remy]: I’d like to join you on one of these inspections.
PRESENTATION CLOSING:
Director Pishotti: We have a long-term commitment to modernize the fleet and ensure firefighters have the apparatus to serve residents. We’ll continue partnering with Council, and those efforts have resulted in record investment. At the same time, national challenges like inflation have required cities across the country to rethink maintenance. Matrix report showed modernizing fire department in major growing city requires significant additional resources and long-term investments. New apparatus are under construction, fire stations being replaced, departments coordinating more closely than ever - we are strengthening the systems. We’ve taken action to address industry headwinds and deploy resources thoughtfully and expediently. We’ll continue to provide the quality fire services that residents expect and deserve.
PUBLIC COMMENTS
John Guroy of the firefighters’ union. Thanks city staff and Council and emphasizes need for improvements to fleet. Discusses mutual aid, the frequency that other agencies responding to Columbus calls, states that this needs to be addressed. Underscored how if this mutual aid causes delays, because units are in other towns, lives can be at risk in these situations.
CLOSING REMARKS
Council President discusses importance of strategic long-term investments, assess that hearing was substantive, and requests follow-up. Thanks attendees.
Chair Remy thanks his team, administration officials, members of Council, the public, those watching online - reaffirming the importance of this hearing. People need answers, public wants to know they’re safe, and Council needs a clear picture on what is delayed, what needs funded, and the milestones. Requests a written follow-up report on those items.