White River Township Fire Protection District
Board Meeting Minutes
April 11, 2001  ~  7:00 p.m.

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District Board Members Present: Paul Kite, Bill Patterson, Chuck Shufflebarger, Jon Raker and Butch Sutton.

District Board Members Absent: none.
District Employees Present: Mike Tibbetts, Eric Brown, Joel Thacker and Kim Clawson.

Corporation Board Members Present:  Scott Alexander

Corporation Employees Present:  Jeff Wilson

Others Present: Eric Reedy, Mark Colucci, Jeff Stainfield, John Poe, Christy Kemp, Steve Alexander.

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1.        Meeting called to order at 7:10 p.m.  Minutes from March 6th board meeting were reviewed.  One change noted by Kim.  Minutes show Mike Combs attending as a Corporation Board Member and he is not on the Board.  Motion by Chuck and 2nd by Bill to accept minutes with change as noted.  All in favor and motion passes.

2.        Eric Reedy gave financial update:

          2000 Capital Outlay        582,511
    1998 Fire Loan                 21,634
    1997 Capital Fund            21,163
    Cumulative Fund             350,336
    Debt Fund                      184,926
    General Fund                -194,354**
    TOTAL                         966,216

** Eric stated that it is okay to have a negative balance in the General Fund as long as it is positive by the end of the year.

 3.        Discussion on Station 53.

a)       John Poe gave update.

-      Interior painting will be done by next week.  Afterwards, floor coverings then finishes, will be completed.

-          Carpeting upstairs will be completed by the end of next week.

-      Milestone will be here at the end of this week for paving. 

-          Per Steve Alexander, next month’s district meeting will be in the new building.  The punch list will be completed within three weeks.

-          MPI is still waiting for electricity to be ran to the tower before they can finish constructing it.

-          The cupola is still in the process of being finished.

-          There are substantial water leaks from the lower part of the roof valley.  John stated that they are working those out on  a ‘day to day’ basis.  And that they would be fixed ‘one way or the other’ by project completion. 

4.        Discussion on station 53’s budget.  Attachments A & B.  One of the major expenses that was not budgeted for was moving the HVAC units which resulted in truss changes and additional duct work.  Eric Reedy will schedule the additional appropriation to be discussed at the June meeting.  ELC Electrical Contractor will be providing an itemized list for their expense of $8,000. 

5.        Steve Alexander suggested that the Board consider adding rubber tread to the stairs.  It is currently in the plans as carpet, but could pose a safety issue for personnel.  Motion by Jon and 2nd by Bill to approve the cost of $2,725 submitted by Chance Brothers to install rubber tread to the stairs.  All in favor and motion carries. 

6.        Motion by Bill and 2nd by Butch to approve the electrical work for the three air vac systems at a total cost of $1,879.  All in favor and motion carries.   Steve Alexander stated that this would be part of the $8,000 in ELC’s budget. 

7.        Discussion on Chief Dutton’s severance issues.  After Eric Reedy reviewed the payroll worksheets from Accu Pay, he noticed a comp time pay out for Chief Dutton.  It also came to the Eric’s attention that Chief Dutton arranged with Accu Pay to not withhold any federal taxes from his final severance check (sick time, vacation time and final salary).  Mark Colucci sent a letter to each of the District board members informing them of this.  After open discussion, Mark will be drafting a letter to Mike Dutton asking for an explanation of the last payroll processing, and informing him that he will be responsible for all income taxes owed that were not withheld.  Motion by Chuck and 2nd by Jon to audit the payroll records of Mike Dutton from March 1999 to present and for legal counsel to send this letter.  All in favor and motion carries. 

8.        Discussion followed on establishing a subcommittee of no more than two members of the District Board who would oversee personnel issues resulting in monthly or quarterly reviews.  This subcommittee would review the benefits policies in place and provide accountability for their administration.  Everyone present agreed to the establishment of the subcommittee.  Bill Patterson and Chuck Shufflebarger both volunteered to be on this Benefits Administration Subcommittee. 

9.        Chuck discussed the recent activities dealing with filling the Chief’s vacancy on a permanent basis.  He stated that he circulated emails to the District board members and asked their input on various issues.  It has been decided that the hiring ad will run in the Indianapolis Star and the Daily Journal for seven days each, starting as soon as Chuck can get the finalized ad to Kim.  Mark Colucci stated that although the Board is not required to advertise at all, it does leave the potential for civil rights violation complaints.  Chuck stated that they are running the exact same ad as the last time, and are only changing the population figures and the salary figures.  The ad will run for one week.  Resumes and letters of intent must be submitted prior to May 15, 2001.  After discussion, it was decided that the following personnel would serve on the committee:  Chuck Shufflebarger, Bill Patterson, Eric Brown and Scott Alexander.  Per the Master Agreement, Scott is serving as the Corporation’s designee.  Chuck reminded everyone that the final decision on the hiring of the Fire Chief lies with the District board of directors. 

10.     Jeff Stainfield, who is the District’s insurance agent, was present to discuss the insurance renewal which is coming up in May.  Our total reported losses over the last two years have been over $59,000.  Motion by Butch and 2nd by Bill to approve $27,461 to renew the insurance package covering the buildings, trucks, portable equipment and liability currently belonging to the District.  The new station and equipment will require additional insurance, which shall be obtained within 90 days of possession of the building.  All in favor and motion carries.  This policy renewal shall serve from May 2001 to May 2002. 

11.     After discussion, hiring from the established Lieutenants list has been placed on temporary hold until the District can guarantee permanent funding.   Eric Reedy will provide a personnel budget covering the next two years at the next District meeting.  

12.     Chuck stated that he has been receiving multiple calls from the Johnson County Commissioners demanding to know why WRTFD is moving their dispatch to MECA once they receive their radios later this year.  Chuck made it adamantly clear that the District Board is the entity to enter into a contract and they have no intention of doing so with MECA.  Chief Tibbetts stated that we have not spoken with MECA about dispatch issues in over a year, and only then it was because of the numerous problems we were having the Johnson County Sheriffs Department dispatch. Chief Tibbetts added that we are continuing to have problems with them, but that he has had several discussions with John Asher and feels that there are options for improvement. 

13.     Chief Tibbetts stated that he is in the process of re-establishing lines of communication with outside agencies that have been broken in the past.  Included are Greenwood Fire, Perry Township Fire, Bargersville Fire, Johnson County Sheriffs Department Dispatch, as well as various media agencies. 

Next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, May 8, at White River Fire Headquarters at 7:00 p.m.