Montgomery Township supervisors decline outside staffing study, opt to proceed with chief’s plan

Montgomery Township supervisors voted to forgo an outside staffing study and move forward with the fire chief’s staffing proposal after more than two hours of public comment and debate. The motion "to not hire a firm to conduct a fire staffing study" was made and subsequently passed by the board.

The discussion centered on whether a third-party consultant would add value beyond the chief’s analysis and whether delaying to commission a study would impede implementation. Carolyn McCreery introduced the item and reminded the board the question before them was whether to hire a consultant for a staffing review; she noted prior public meetings and recommended that, if the board sought a more comprehensive operations study, it could be authorized for 2026.

Supporters of the chief’s plan and opponents of a new study cited the chief’s work and the township’s existing data. Dan Gormley, chair of the township public safety committee, said the committee voted to "recommend moving forward with Chief Wegman’s plan as presented." Vinay Sethi, deputy fire chief, told the board that…