Sharon Kiley Mack
Bangor Daily News

NEWPORT, Maine — Town Manager James Ricker is gathering area town managers together for a frank discussion on the costs of municipal construction, fire equipment purchases and labor.

The result, he hopes, could be a regional fire service likely located in Palmyra. The towns he is talking with include Corinna, St. Albans and Pittsfield.

With the intended consolidation of the state and county jail system as well as the proposed school consolidation plans, Ricker said, it was fiscally responsible to begin talking about the regionalization of other services and obligations.

"Communications has been regionalized," he said. "Why not response?"

Ricker said he began thinking of a regional solution when looking at alternatives to the town's aging fire station. He said that by constructing a regional fire center, duplication of purchases could be avoided and a new fire station could be built using federal grant funds, and yet response time in the individual communities would not be affected.

The idea was floated more than a decade ago and discarded, but again interests today's managers.

"Absolutely we will be part of the discussions," Pittsfield Town Manager Kathryn Ruth said Sunday. She said that no town by itself can afford to purchase new high-cost equipment, such as aerial trucks. "Coordinating our efforts makes absolute sense," Ruth added.

St. Albans Town Manager Larry Post said his community has saved about $100,000 for a new fire station but construction is still a long way away.

"I would be amenable to talking about a regional facility," he said. "We need to be farsighted enough to look at all options."

Town Manager Dalton Mullis of Corinna said, "I'd certainly be all for investigating the possibilities. We'd be remiss if we didn't."

Nearly 20 years ago, Pittsfield Fire Captain Kerry Martin worked to create a regional fire service. No one needed a new fire station at the time, new construction was still affordable, and the idea did not gain momentum. However, Martin's efforts resulted in many longstanding mutual aid agreements and regional training events that still occur today.

Sharing fire protection is nothing new. Many, if not all, rural departments have mutual aid agreements with neighboring fire departments. These agreements range from backup coverage to mandatory response to all calls.

The cities of Waterville and Winslow share a fire chief. So do the small towns of Detroit and Palmyra.

But what Ricker is proposing goes beyond just backing each other up. He envisions a cost-saving measure that could go further. He said it makes no sense for two nearby departments to purchase the same type of expensive fire equipment. By running a regional service, duplications could be avoided.

The project also could stand to garner major federal funding, since regional projects are given a higher priority.

Ricker said each town would maintain its own substation, likely with a utility truck or rescue unit. He said this reflects the reality of fire response today. "We are going to fewer and fewer fires," he said. "Most of our fire calls now are rescue situations."

In Pittsfield, for example, there are far more calls for assistance at Interstate 95 accident scenes than for fires at Pittsfield homes.

No date has been set for the first discussion, Ricker said.

Copyright 2008 Bangor Daily News