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Fire chief outlines station replacement cost estimates and hiring pause; department prioritizing bond funding
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Summary
Chief Dean Crispin reported cost estimates from Public Works for replacing four fire facilities, a 45-day pause on hiring non‑uniform positions and priorities for an upcoming public-safety bond that may move from 2028 to 2026.
At the Sept. 24 San Francisco Fire Commission meeting, Chief of Department Dean Crispin reported cost estimates from the Department of Public Works for several station replacements and said the department is preparing to seek bond funds to pay for them.
Crispin read DPW cost estimates for four sites: Fire Station 2 ($31,771,622); Fire Station 7 ($41,574,120); Fire Station 40 (approximately $17,000,000); and 1415 Evans Street (the Bureau of Equipment site) at about $113,814,160. He said two of the stations are battalion stations and one is a division station, which the department considers critical for disaster response and command functions.
The chief told commissioners the city is discussing a voter bond currently scheduled for 2028 that would cover multiple public-safety agencies; he said city leaders were considering moving the bond question to 2026. He emphasized the department must make a case for how much of the bond’s total — which Chief Miller characterized as a maximum $350,000,000 for all participating agencies — should be allocated to fire projects. Crispin said the department will prioritize which stations to include in the bond.
Crispin also reported the department is under a 45-day pause on hiring non‑uniform positions. He said the pause affects several positions the department plans to fill that impact frontline operations and that he was working with the mayor’s budget office to resolve the pause so hires can proceed.
On staffing and training, Crispin said Academy 136 is in week nine and progressing, and MSH3 Level 1 Academy 21–28 is in week two and expected to add two paramedics next week. He described two general orders: one establishing an EMS advancement academy to support firefighter EMTs advancing to paramedic classifications, and another awarding 390 vacancies by seniority to reduce the number of unassigned members; he said only 31 unassigned members remained after the process.
Crispin closed his report by announcing the death of Commander Phil Buckley, longtime leader of the fire reserves; Buckley’s funeral was scheduled for Oct. 25 at St. Cecilia.
Commissioners asked questions about whether station buildings could be retrofitted rather than rebuilt; Crispin said Station 2 would need to meet post‑1994 seismic standards and that DPW advised that rebuilding is more cost‑effective than retrofitting. Commissioners also asked for clearer cost breakdowns; Crispin said DPW provided whole‑building numbers and that the department is analyzing more detailed breakdowns to identify potential reductions.
