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Phoenixville council authorizes application for SAFER grant to add firefighters; chief outlines hiring constraints
Summary
Council authorized staff to apply for a FEMA SAFER grant to add up to seven firefighters; Fire Chief explained program timelines and implications for the borough's multi-year hiring plan.
Phoenixville Borough Council authorized staff to submit an application for a Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant that would fund up to seven firefighter positions, voting 8-0 to move forward with the application.
Councilmember Berkley made the motion to seek the grant; Councilmember Moore seconded it. Fire Chief (identified in the meeting as Chief Brazil) described program requirements, including a 180-day recruitment period and a 36-month period of performance for hires funded under the grant. He said hires under the SAFER award are subject to the program’s recruitment and performance timelines and that staggering hires to match the borough’s existing multiyear hiring plan could limit the borough’s ability to claim full reimbursement under the program’s rules.
Chief Brazil also told council that the SAFER program’s reinstated local-match requirement (compared with previous cycles) changed the competitive landscape for applicants and that the borough’s multi-year plan (currently budgeting roughly two hires per year independent of the grant) would remain the default if a SAFER award is not received. Counsel and staff told council the borough would not seek duplicate hires beyond the previously budgeted plan if the grant is awarded; instead, the grant funds would accelerate staffing toward the borough’s longer-term staffing goals.
Councilmembers asked clarifying questions about the timing of hires and the fiscal impact on the borough. Councilmember Tougan (raising concern about hiring seven people at once) asked whether the borough would be required to hire all seven immediately; the chief said the grant allows a staggered approach but that a staggered hiring schedule can affect the reimbursement schedule and the ability to maximize grant funding.
The motion passed 8-0. Council directed staff to proceed with the application and to return with detailed budgetary and implementation plans if the award is made.
