County Responds To Town of Stettler’s Fire Department Announcement

The Reeve for the County of Stettler has responded to a recent announcement by the Town of Stettler on area fire services.

In a July 23 news release, the town announced plans to move forward with an independent fire department, citing concerns about losing control over assets under a regional commission model.

Mayor Sean Nolls explained, “When looking at a commission model, it removes control and decisions over our assets and infrastructure and this is not the right move for the Town of Stettler going forward.

By retaining control of our equipment, we can reduce costs, and ensure we have the right equipment to respond to emergencies that are unique to our needs.”

County Reeve Larry Clarke, speaking to Hometown Media, said he was surprised by the town’s concerns.

“We can’t understand how you lose your autonomy, because our proposed regional fire commission explicitly allows each municipality to retain ownership of its assets, and define a level of service which may be different from other members.

We invited the Town to be part of the commission, plus the door is still open anytime they want to come back to work as a partner.”

Mayor Nolls stated in the release: “a regional model with autonomy has existed in one form or another since 1981 while providing exceptional fire services to our community, and it is the Town’s position that we could have continued to do the same.”

The issue has been brought to the forefront after the County announced plans to launch a fire commission, after withdrawing from the regional fire agreement in May.

Reeve Clarke noted: “One of the things about the commission is you can set them up however you need to, but right now with our regional partners, we have the largest portion of capital.

You’ve got politics in everything, but it removes a lot of the politics, especially out of the day-to-day operations of the fire hall to be a more direct means to be able to get equipment.

But you know, operating two independent fire departments will lead to duplication of expenses and administration. Now we will both be maintaining and keeping our engines in our separate halls.

We’ll still have our mutual aid agreements to assist each other, but with two halls, we could see the strain on our volunteers.”

New County Fire Hall Progressing

Meanwhile, renovations are underway to the new Stettler County Fire Services building along Highway 12 & 38 Street.

Reeve Clarke pointed out: “There’s a timeline for some of the specialized equipment such as the bunker gear. As far as the renovations of the hall, it’s moving right along. We’ve taken possession of the lease and the painting’s done.

I’m really looking forward to when we can invite you folks out to take a look at the new hall. We’re thinking about September or October depending on when the equipment comes in.”

Volunteer Capacity Remains Uncertain

Clarke acknowledged ongoing questions about staffing, particularly whether the region has enough volunteers to support two departments.

“These are details that are going to have to be ironed out in the next couple weeks. A lot of the firefighters have a choice on whether they could do one, the other, or both.

If they’re able to choose both, they’ll need two sets of bunker gears, with one set at each hall. So that is one of the holdups while we get organized.

But we’re realizing that’s a real strain on themselves and their time as well. Unless you have combined practices, you can’t start asking people to give up two days a week, plus their call-ins.”

Hometown Media Stettler will have more on the fire services issue as it develops.