Grand Haven council approves negotiations with Life EMS as new ambulance provider

Grand Haven City Council on Dec. 15 authorized staff to enter contract negotiations with Life EMS to become the city’s ambulance provider, following a regional request-for-proposals and unanimous support from area fire chiefs.

Nicole Hudson, the city’s director of public safety, told the council the RFP process generated three responses — Trinity Health, AMR and Life — and that "all the fire chiefs, based on the RFPs, feel that Life's commitment" best met the region’s stated staffing, standby and equipment requirements. Hudson said Life agreed to provide a minimum of two ambulances in the service area and to supply ambulance standbys at fire scenes, and that the company proposed CAD-to-CAD dispatch integration to improve response coordination.

Council members asked staff to pursue standard contract protections: clear service-level metrics, response-time guarantees, escalation and remedy provisions, and term and escalation clauses. Hudson said the negotiating team would review existing successful templates (including a contract used in Kalamazoo) and would seek language tying performance to remedies if standards are not met. She noted Life was proposing a four-year contract with options for extensions and that the company planned a 4–6 month reevaluation window to adjust staffing.

The council voted unanimously to authorize negotiations and return any final contract for council approval. The action was procedural authorization only; no final contract was signed at the meeting.

Next steps: staff will negotiate the detailed service agreement, including measurable response-time metrics and accountability provisions, then present the proposed contract to council for final approval.