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Public Safety Committee reviews 2024 comprehensive emergency management plan; no council action yet
Summary
At the Feb. 3 Public Safety Committee meeting, Fire Chief Bailey briefed members on the 2024 Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan, which the state has approved. Committee members asked for three priority points for the full council and agreed to further department review and exercise-based testing later this year.
Rob Whatton, chair of the Public Safety Committee, opened the Feb. 3 meeting by placing the city’s 2024 Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan before the committee for discussion. Fire Chief Bailey told the committee the state has approved the plan and recommended further adjustments over time.
The plan matters because state approval is required for certain grant applications and because the document is intended to be maintained as a living plan. Chief Bailey said, “It's meant to be revised every year,” and noted the version to go to the full council will include a front page for the mayor’s signature and the state’s approval letter.
Committee members asked for a tighter summary the council can digest. Whatton asked Chief Bailey, “Could you bring forward 3 big ideas that you want to relay to the rest of the council?” Bailey agreed to prepare those three points for the next Public Safety meeting and to incorporate any substantive director feedback before sending the plan to the full council. Administrator Chambliss said the focus this year is “training and preparedness,” and noted Bailey has “a plan laid out for the whole year on getting us up to speed through a series of tabletop exercises and rehearsal drills.”
Bailey and committee members described a sequence of next steps rather than a formal vote: (1) department directors will review the draft and propose operational changes as needed; (2) Chief Bailey will bring three priority items to the next Public Safety meeting to shape the summary taken to full council; and (3) the city will schedule exercise-based testing, including tabletop and emergency operations center drills, later in the year to identify needed technical and procedural tweaks. Whatton also said he planned a Saturday visit to the fire department to observe and improve familiarity between the council and department staff.
No formal action was taken on the plan at the committee level during the meeting; members agreed the plan should be presented to the full council in February after the requested refinements and director input.
Votes at a glance
- Agenda: Accepted as presented (no objections stated during roll call). - Minutes dated Jan. 21, 2025: Approved as presented (no objections stated).
