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Commissioners press for ability to hire in-house trades to speed station repairs
Summary
After repeated maintenance delays attributed to Public Works, commissioners urged the Fire Department to pursue authority to employ its own plumbers, electricians and trades staff; chiefs said conversations with Public Works are underway and an opinion from the city attorney was suggested.
Commissioners at the San Francisco Fire Commission meeting pressed department leaders to reduce dependence on Public Works Bureau of Building Repair (BBR) for routine station maintenance and to consider hiring in-house trades staff.
Assistant/Support Services (Don/Keith) DeWitt described operational limits: "DPW has the right of first refusal for everything," he said, and explained that DPW labor shortages and contract thresholds (JOC and $10,000 limits for private approved contractors) have left some maintenance requests unaddressed or delayed. DeWitt and Chief Janine Nicholson said DPW sometimes refuses work for capacity reasons, that smaller maintenance work is often constrained by policy and contract thresholds, and that the department has been discussing options with Public Works to expand timely repairs.
Commissioner Ken Cleveland and others argued that the current arrangement creates safety and quality-of-life concerns for firefighters living and working in stations, and recommended the commission request an opinion from the city attorney to clarify what would be required for the Fire Department to employ its own plumbers, electricians and other craftsmen. Chief Nicholson said she is in ongoing conversations with Public Works leadership and a new city administrator and is hopeful progress can be made but cautioned that the city charter and funding constraints make structural changes complex.
Assistant DeWitt said hiring departmental trades positions would save money and reduce lead times because the department would be able to acquire parts and schedule work directly; he proposed recruiting a senior engineer to supervise trades staff and cited other city agencies that maintain in-house crews. Commissioners asked staff to report back with options and said a legal opinion could help determine whether administrative or charter changes would be required.
The commission also raised specific deferred-maintenance examples (failing heating systems, generator needs, a broken station window and recurring stolen trash toters) to illustrate urgency. Department staff reported using rentals and prioritization to keep stations operational when long-term repairs are delayed.
