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TO:

Honorable Mayor and Members of the Common Council

FROM:

Mike Stanley, Fire Chief

DATE:

November 12, 2024

SUBJECT:

Res 24-565 Approve Transfer of Retired OFD Ambulance to the Grand Chute Fire Department ($5,000.00)

BACKGROUND

In 2022, the Wisconsin Policy Forum completed a study analyzing options for enhanced fire department collaboration in the Fox Valley, in which the Oshkosh Fire Department participated. One of the five possible collaboration areas identified was fleet maintenance and management. One suggestion was that reserve apparatus would be shared amongst participating departments. Since the completion of the study, the Grand Chute Fire Department has committed to providing ambulance services for their community beginning in January 2025. To fully provide this service, the Grand Chute Fire Department needs a reserve ambulance.

ANALYSIS

The Oshkosh Fire Department will be retiring an ambulance from service this month. By selling the ambulance to the Grand Chute Fire Department this would add an additional unit in our region that could be placed in service in times of overwhelming call volume, mass casualty incidents, and disasters. This could directly benefit the City of Oshkosh and reduce the strain on our department by having an additional service provider in the Fox Valley. Additionally, the department has an existing agreement with the Grand Chute Fire Department to share equipment and apparatus on a short-term basis. This creates the potential for OFD to borrow the ambulance should our fleet be diminished due to our secondary units being out of service for repairs. This arrangement has great mutual benefit to both departments.

FISCAL IMPACT

Based on the market value for the ambulance’s make, model, and mileage, and the amount that the retired ambulances have garnered in the past, the approximate value of this unit is $5,000.00. The ambulance would be sold as is. Once transferred, the Oshkosh Fire Department and the City of Oshkosh would have no further financial or administrative responsibility for any of the costs associated with the ambulance's preventative maintenance, repairs, or licensing.

RECOMMENDATION

This ambulance has served the community of Oshkosh well. It played a role in saving many lives over the years. The City of Oshkosh now has a unique opportunity to help another community save lives with this same ambulance. The recommendation would be that Common Council approve this request so that the ambulance can still fulfill its intended purpose of being a vehicle that firefighters can use to transport the sick and injured to the hospital.

Attachments

RES 24-565