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Resident flags data errors and urges volunteer, grant approach instead of hiring 19 firefighters
Summary
During public comment, Stephen Allen said he found "3 glaring math errors" in the fire department expansion proposal and urged the board to pursue volunteer recruitment, stipends and grant writing rather than immediately hiring 19 full‑time firefighters; the fire chief described current grants and recruitment efforts.
Stephen Allen, a resident, told the Montgomery Township Board of Supervisors he reviewed the fire department expansion proposal and found "3 glaring math errors," calling into question the plan to add 19 full‑time firefighters. "If somebody wanted me to invest $2,000,000 a year and has 3 major math errors in it, I'm not investing," Allen said during public comment, and urged the board to consider alternatives including higher volunteer stipends, recruiting at the vocational/tech school and using grant writers.
The fire chief (name not given in the record) responded that the numbers in the presentation use different sample sizes for different analyses — the annual report graphed by a 100‑series classification and the staffing study used incidents with an engine response. The chief said the staffing data he provided in June covered about 1,600 incidents and that he would email an updated data extract (June 6 to the meeting date) to the board the following day. He also confirmed the department has an active federal SAFER grant of $200,000 targeting recruitment and retention and described ongoing recruitment ties with the local tech school and an explorer program.
Board members and speakers noted the challenge of recruiting younger volunteers who often leave the area because of housing costs. The chief warned against a "mercenary" approach of bringing unknown people in simply to fill stipend shifts, saying it could compromise crew integrity and safety. He said the stipend was recently increased to $100 per shift but the department still struggles to fill weekend schedules and that stipend increases may not be a sustainable long‑term solution.
The board did not take formal action at the meeting. Chair encouraged residents to attend a dedicated November 10 meeting about the fire staffing and budget, and staff said they remain open to pursuing grants, training partnerships and other recruitment strategies before making final decisions on career staffing.
The issue remains under discussion and the board has not voted on hiring additional full‑time firefighters.
