Orono’s fire department staff levels continue to grow after a pair of positions were approved by the Orono City Council on May 13.
The council approved Fire Chief James Van Eyll’s request to hire two new paid on-call firefighters in a 3-1 vote. Council member Alisa Benson voted against the resolution.
“Authorizing the hiring of more staffing is not something I support” Benson said.
The recommended candidates, Oliver Kennedy and Tyler Rempel, recently underwent application screenings and interviews. Each candidate must also pass a background check administered by the Orono Police Department and physical and psychological examinations through the Fire Department. Previous hirings from the Long Lake Department did not have to undergo these examinations.
Upon their hiring, slated as May 14, candidates enter a probationary period as they progress through medical and firefighting training. During this period, new firefighters are scheduled only when two other experienced firefighters are on call. They can still respond to calls after hours (between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.) without supervision.
Van Eyll said Kennedy and Rempel will begin medical classes immediately, but noted that the firefighter classes the pair need to move on from the probationary period start “towards the end of the year and run through June.”
With this approval, the Orono Fire Department now consists of 11 paid on-call firefighters, 10 part-time firefighters, and Van Eyll.
The council also approved the fire department’s request to procure new radios for its temporary station at the old Public Works site. The council again approved the resolution 3-1, with Benson voting against it.
The radios, Motorola APX Consolletes, will be purchased for $22,982.24, but would be upgradeable to allow for Station Alerting in the future. The department’s current radio equipment is not upgradeable, with producer Motorola discontinuing support for those models in 2025.
No equipment is being purchased for the Navarre station, also called Station 2, at this time. The Navarre station is currently staffed and under the auspices of the Long Lake Fire Department. The Orono Fire Department plans to bring a future request to the council to procure more equipment for the Navarre station. Orono plans to assume responsibility for fire service in the Navarre area on July 1, despite an existing fire services agreement with the Long Lake Fire Department that runs through Dec. 31, 2025.
After rejecting bids on March 11 to construct a new fire station at 3770 Shoreline Drive, the council continued its plan to explore adding a temporary fire facility at Navarre Water Plant. The council voted 3-1 on the fire department’s request to add a 14 x 36 foot garage at Navarre Water Plant to house fire equipment. Benson was again the lone dissension.
Firefighters will not be stationed at this facility, which has been called Navarre Garage. Fire engines housed at this facility will be “out and about’’ from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., ready to respond to calls. The engines will be housed at the Navarre site between 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.
Response times between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. will depend on the location of the engine and the readiness of the crew.
The facility is estimated to cost $169,513.46. Funds will be drawn from the Facilities Fund, including the $3,000,000 sum from the 2021 facilities bond.
Orono is still on track to move into the Navarre station in 2026 once the existing fire services contract with Long Lake expires. After the contract’s expiration, Navarre Garage is expected to be used to house Orono Parks and other Public Works equipment while fire equipment is transferred to Navarre station.
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The council unanimously approved a request to expand parking at the Lurton Dog Park. Due to the park’s popularity and often full parking lot, many park visitors must park on the busy Wayzata Blvd. To ensure the safety of visitors, 15 stalls will be added to the existing lot; 14 regular and one ADA.
The $74,730 needed to complete this project will be paid for by the Lurton Park Fund, a separate fund from the Orono Park Fund.
The council also approved the construction of a pavilion at the Orono Golf Course in a 3-1 decision. Benson voted against the measure, noting community concerns about noise levels, players “lingering,” parking space, and budgeting.
Parks & golf superintendent Josh Lemons stated that course workers are already trained to host large events, the course will install new cameras at the pavilion, and that future corporate events will require no more parking than existing golf league events
The Lions will shoulder half of the estimated $80,222 cost for the project. The Lions will also supply labor. Richie Anderson of North Shore Marina donated an additional $2,500 to the project, leaving a remaining balance of $37,722 to be paid by the city.
Lemons said that the Golf Course Enterprise fund can cover roughly half of the remaining amount, meaning Orono will owe around $20,000 to complete the project.
“This is a surprise for council in terms of a spend,” Benson said. “This is a project that can be a good one, but it’s my perspective that this is, given we didn’t budget and speak about it, not something I want to see implemented and voted on right now.”
City finance director Maggie Jin said that Orono does not currently have the funds in its parks budget for this project but is “levying for” additional money. Lin ultimately endorsed its approval.
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