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San Francisco moves to buy new fireboat with federal grant; committee asks department to report back on vessel fleet plans
Summary
The committee advanced a $7.6M federal port‑security grant and an ~$11.6M construction contract for a new fireboat, while adding a requirement that Fire Department report back after delivery on whether older boats will be decommissioned.
The San Francisco Fire Department asked the Budget & Finance Committee to approve two related items: acceptance of approximately $7.6 million in federal Port Security Grant funding and approval of a contract to purchase a new Type‑2 fireboat at a negotiated not‑to‑exceed amount of roughly $11.6 million. Chief Joanne Hayes‑White and CFO Mark Corso described the operational importance of fireboats (fire suppression, search and rescue, oil‑spill response and auxiliary water supply) and noted the department’s existing vessels are over 60 years old.
The grant requires a local match. The department presented a funding plan combining the federal grant ($7.6M), redirected equipment appropriations (~$983K), UASI homeland security funds (~$345K), a proposed mayoral general‑fund allocation (~$1.5M pending mayoral proposal) and other potential grants/donations; that left an estimated gap of roughly $1.2M the department continues to pursue through grants or donations and said the mayor’s office has pledged to work on it if needed.
Two bidders submitted proposals for construction; one bidder (Marine Group Boat Works) raised concerns in public comment about the evaluation and option pricing; OCA staff (Jackie Fong) described the RFP scoring (technical and fee criteria) and that the procurement panel unanimously recommended Vigor Fab. The Budget Analyst recommended approval of both the grant acceptance and the contract but recommended the committee require the department to decommission one older boat when the new vessel is delivered to avoid a three‑boat operating posture funded by the Port; the Fire Department preferred to retain operational flexibility and the committee amended the recommendation: it advanced both items to the full Board with a recommendation but inserted a requirement that the Fire Department report back to the Board when the new boat is delivered with its plan either to decommission or maintain the fleet.
The committee also discussed procurement timeline, prior grant delays and risks associated with securing the remaining local funds for the match. The full Board will consider the grant acceptance and contract at a later meeting; the committee’s report‑back language creates a clear next step for the department.
