By Kelly Smith
NASHOTAH, Wis. — Delafield Fire Chief Jack Edwards has been named chief of the Lake Country Fire and Rescue, a consolidation of the Lake County Fire Department, which serves the Villages of Chenequa and Nashotah, and the City of Delafield Fire Department.
A commission responsible for hiring and firing firefighters for the newly created department unanimously approved Edwards at a meeting Tuesday night at the Nashotah Fire Station.
The appointment is subject to Edwards passing medical and psychological exams and meeting all job qualifications included in a job description.
After approving the job description, the commission met in a closed session for about 35 minutes to discuss appointing Edwards.
Edwards was out of town and unavailable for comment.
Delafield Mayor Ed McAleer said he was confident Edwards would meet the qualifications for the position since they are similar to the qualifications for the Delafield fire chief spot. Edwards was appointed to that position in 2006.
McAleer was one of several elected officials in the three communities who wanted Edwards to have the job.
Edwards was also endorsed by Rod Stotts of Nashotah, the president of the governing board that will prepare the budget and oversee operations of the new department.
However, the commission insisted on developing a job description for the position before hiring the chief.
The job description was necessary, according to commission members, to make sure Edwards was qualified for the position and could be disciplined by the commission, if necessary, for failing to meet his job responsibilities.
One of the key provisions in the qualifications is that the chief be familiar with “the unique circumstances in each of the communities” and be “knowledgeable about the merger process and facilitate the implementation of the Lake Country Fire and Rescue agreement ?”
Commission member Rob Manegold of Chenequa said that qualification was important because each of the communities have distinctly different firefighting challenges.
Edwards, 48, a Kettle Moraine High School graduate, rose through the ranks of the city Fire Department that he joined in 1980.
He has attended numerous firefighting training courses and programs at the Waukesha County Technical College.
When he appointed chief in 2006, some City Hall insiders questioned whether he had the political acumen or entrepreneurial skills required for the position.
The entrepreneurial abilities are necessary because the department operates a paramedic program that generates about $600,000 in revenue by providing services to seven communities and Oconomowoc Memorial Hospital.
The political skills are essential because the chief has to work with elected officials, community leaders and a fire department that is a mix of volunteers and full-time career firefighters.
But Edwards displayed his skills when two communities signed onto the paramedic program after he became the Delafield chief.
He also established a close working relationship with the committee that drafted the merger agreement as well as the governing board appointed to implement the agreement.
Edwards and his wife, Cheryl, are the parents of two adult children and a teenager.
Lake County Fire Chief Richard Hagemann, regarded by some as the “father” of the merger between the Chenequa and Nashotah departments, plans to retire.
But on Tuesday night, commission members said they hoped the governing board would retain Hagemann’s services as a consultant to assist Edwards in getting the new department operational.
Copyright 2009 Journal Sentinel Inc.