Springdale seeks grant to hire new firefighters

SPRINGDALE — The city needs 22 firefighters before it opens Fire Station No. 9 next year. A grant could help pay their salaries. Chief Mike Irwin asked the City Council on Monday night for permission to apply for the grant in the city’s name, and council members approved.

“The grant would allow us to hire personnel with reduced city expense for a certain amount of time,” Irwin said.

Irwin said the grant will pay 75 percent of six starting

firefighters’ salaries for two years and 35 percent for one more year. Then the city will take over paying the salaries.

The grant would pay $585,327 over the three years, and the city would pay $412,374.

Irwin said the grant is designed to assist fire departments experiencing high turnover and trouble finding recruits. He said Springdale qualifies. When the economy runs well, most candidates look for jobs in other fields with higher pay, he said.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency administrates the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response grant.

Advisers told Springdale officials the grant most often awards larger amounts to more urban departments. Springdale would immediately disqualify from consideration if the local department asked for more than six firefighters at a time.

Irwin said he would hire the additional 16 firefighters needed “one at a time.”

Confirmation of grant approval could come as early as July 31. Then the Fire Department would have six months to hire the firefighters, and the city’s part of the salaries would be included in the 2020 budget, Mayor Doug Sprouse said.

The City Council approved hiring six firefighters earlier this year. They started training last week for the opening of Fire Station No. 7 this summer on Har-Ber Avenue.

The department requested the hiring of no new positions for Station 8, which will open near the end of the year on East Huntsville Avenue. Fire Station No. 9 will be adjacent to the city’s new Shaw Family Park in the northwest quadrant of the city.

The Fire Department will undergo a bit of reorganization with the new stations, Irwin said. Two battalion chiefs will be on duty each shift to help cover the size and scope of the expanded department.