City negotiates cost of fire service with townships

Compensation paid by six townships for fire protection services provided by the Clear Lake Volunteer Fire Department will more than double under the terms of new, updated agreements.

Clear Lake City Administrator Scott Flory and Fire Chief Doug Meyers discussed agreements reached with Clear Lake, Grant, 

Lake, Lincoln, Mt. Vernon and Union Township trustees at Monday’s City Council meeting.  The pair met with trustees for the first time since 2004 to renegotiate the agreements; prior to that, they had not been re­negotiated since 1977.

“The proposed Township Fire Protection Agreements remain largely unchanged, with the exception term and compensation,” explained Flory.  The revised agreements have an effective date of July 1, 2015 to provide townships with time to work the new numbers into their respective budgets.

The new, 10-year agreements are subject to review every two years; they will be automatically renewed unless either party gives notice.

Chief Meyers noted the fee for fire service to each township, or portions of townships served by the CLFD, were determined using the Oster Formula, a statewide standard which bases service cost on property valuation and population.  Use of the formula shined a light on population shifts and development, especially in Clear Lake (south shore of Clear Lake) and Lake Township (between Clear Lake and Mason City).  Ten years of population data - Read More Via e-Edition