Berkley Formalizes Pact With Highland Park Fire Department

The Berkley City Council formalized a longstanding but controversial mutual aid agreement between the and the Highland Park Fire Department during its meeting Monday night at .

The pact will allow Berkley to assist Highland Park during times of "inordinate need" as it does with other communities throughout Oakland County, as well as receive hands-on training during active fires in the Wayne County city and assistance with events such as the Woodward Dream Cruise or should there be a major fire in Berkley, Public Safety Director Richard Eshman said.

But critics have expressed concern about the agreement.

"I have nothing against Highland Park," said lifelong Berkley resident Rick Stuber, who also serves as a public safety sergeant in Bloomfield Hills. "Those guys are heroes down there. They're working their butts off. And, I'm not against training."

But, Stuber went on to cite his concerns, including: the danger posed by training or responding in booby-trapped crack houses or crumbling buildings whose structural integrity has been compromised; the expense of workman's compensation, potential overtime and wear and tear on equipment; the time comittment involved and whether it would leave Berkley vulnerable.

He urged the City Council to table the matter and take time for further study.

Eshman, BPS Deputy Director Robert North, City Manager Jane Bais-DiSessa and City Attorney Dale Schneider sought to address Stuber's concerns, which they said have been echoed by some residents and a minority of Public Safety officers.

• Danger posed by training in an active fire: "Some have suggested that we train solely at the (Combined Regional Emergency Services Training) center (in Auburn Hills)," which is a controlled setting, Eshman said. But, "you go down to (Highland Park) and see their dented helmets and torn turnout gear and that's something our young guys listen to. ... Theirs is a very fire-rich environment. You can't stage that." North added that training in Highland Park gives Berkley Public Safety officers exposure to fighting fires in tall buildings, as well as handling medical situations, which he said improves the quality of service in Berkley. "The reality of our business is that it's dangerous. ... Therefore, we would be remiss if we did not prepare our people," North said.
• Related expenses: Bais-DiSessa, the city manager, said Berkley's current insurance policy will accommodate a stipulation of the agreement that requires each party to have "minimum limits of $1 million auto and $1 million combined single limit general liability and professional liability." She said Eshman will arrange officers' schedules to avoid overtime whenever possible but stressed that Berkley only expects to be called to assist Highland Park on rare occasions. She said Berkley will be responsible for wear and tear on equipment, but that "is nothing out of the ordinary." Eshman also argued that the agreement is consistent with Gov. Rick Snyder's requirement for collaboration between cities to secure state revenue-sharing funds.
• Time comittment: Eshman said that during the past three to four years, Berkley has assisted only twice in Highland Park, once during a fuel tanker fire because the city has a special foam needed to extinguish those types of flames and once during an eight-hour fire at the historic Highland Towers apartment buildling on Woodward Avenue that required the assistance of multiple departments. "The main involvement we have is three to four times a year we go to Highland Park to train," he said. Schneider, the city attorney, added that there is no liability to Berkley if the city chooses not to assist Highland Park when its help is requested. The mutual aid agreement states: "A decision whether to respond to the request can only be made by the Chief, or Deputy Chief of the department asked to respond, or their designee. It is further understood that local situations and availability are part of the response determination." Schneider also noted that "there is an out clause if the city decides the agreement isn't working."
• Protecting Berkley first: Eshman said that when a request for assistance comes in, he assesses staffing to determine the department's availability. If needed, mutual aid partners Huntington Woods, Oak Park and Beverly Hills can be put on alert to provide backup in Berkley, he said. "No one is left unattended here," he said.

Councilman Dan Terbrack said that, while he understands residents' concerns about the agreement, after hearing more details during the meeting Monday night, he was struggling to understand the controversy.

"We do this with a lot of cities in Oakland County that are a lot farther away (such as South Lyon). I don't think residents would want the city to say no to someone in need," he said, adding that he believes the majority of Berkley Public Safety officers support the agreement with Highland Park.

However, speaking to one of Stuber's concerns, Terbrack said he would not support responding to Highland Park fires more often than Berkley has in the past.

"If something does happen and we are getting called down there more often, I will want to re-examine and possibly withdraw," from the mutual aid agreement, he said.

In response, Bais-DiSessa said she will give the City Council regular reports on how the agreement is working and reminded residents that the agreement has been in place informally for at least five years.

"We're going to do our best to monitor this," she said on Tuesday. "... If it starts going in a wrong direction, we'll bring it back and re-examine it."