Posted: Oct. 14, 2009 |(0) Comments

A battle once again may be looming over how much members of the North Shore Fire Department should contribute to the cost of operating the department.

This issue surfaced this week when a proposal to modify the funding formula for the department drew immediate criticism from its Board of Directors.

Under the proposal, the value of commercial property within a municipality would be less of a factor than it is now when determining each community's share of the department's cost.

Some board members say the change would benefit Glendale and hurt smaller communities at a time when local officials already are grappling with tight budgets.

Cost a contentious issue

The issue of what share of the department's budget should be borne by each of its seven members isn't a new one. In 2007, Glendale threatened to pull out of the department and contract with Milwaukee for fire service because officials said the funding formula was inequitable.

The NSFD board, attempting to answer Glendale's concerns over escalating costs, then froze the percentage charged to each community under the formula at its 2008 level and established a subcommittee to review it. If the formula is not changed by 2012, it will revert to what it was before the freeze.

The subcommittee, made up of representatives of Brown Deer, Shorewood and Glendale, presented the proposed new formula to the department's board on Tuesday.

There would be winners and losers under the plan.

For example, if the proposed change had been in effect for 2009, Whitefish Bay's contribution would have been more than $100,000 more than it would under the original 2009 formula before it was frozen, and about $90,000 more than it is under the frozen formula.

Glendale, on the other hand, would have seen its contribution fall by about $226,000 from what it would have been before the funding formula was frozen.

"The beneficiary of that is Glendale," said Bayside Village President Sam Dickman. "Everyone else will pass Glendale $230,000."

Property values a factor

The current funding formula is based on valuation, population and use. Commercial and industrial properties are now weighted more heavily than residential property in determining what a community's share of the costs should be.

Under the proposal, commercial and residential property would be weighted the same.

But Dickman and River Hills Village President Robert Brunner questioned the change in the importance of commercial valuation.

"Commercial (ventures) triggers daytime population more than a residential population triggers a need for fire and rescue," Brunner said. "Dry cleaners, restaurants, certain businesses have higher risks and increased population leads to increased calls for services."

Another key change being proposed is using five-year rolling averages to determine usage figures rather than a three-year average.

Shorewood Village President Guy Johnson, a member of the subcommittee, said the current formula causes big swings in the contributions due from each of the members. "Rolling averages tend to smooth that out," he said.

Debate will continue

The freeze on the current formula is set to expire in 2012. Fox Point Village President Michael West suggested the board consider the proposed formula change early next year, allowing further discussion and modifications.

Members indicated they want to see the impact of using a five-year rolling average for valuation as part of the discussion.

Bayside Village Manager Andy Pederson said that might further flatten increases over time, creating less fluctuation in the individual communities' budgets.