Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Committee backs joint Wauwatosa–West Allis fire department; approves $1M-per-city equity plan and moves contracts to council
Summary
The Wauwatosa Government Affairs Committee unanimously recommended the Common Council approve an intergovernmental agreement with West Allis to form a Joint Fire Department, including $1,000,000 equity contributions from each city, shared governance, a path to apply for a state innovation grant by March 31, and a target legal start date of Jan. 1, 2027.
The Wauwatosa Government Affairs Committee voted unanimously to recommend that the Common Council approve an intergovernmental agreement with West Allis to establish a Joint Fire Department, a step that staff said would stabilize budgets and position both cities to apply for a state innovation grant.
City Administrator Archambault introduced the item and turned the presentation over to Melissa Weiss and Finance Director John Ugini, who said cross-jurisdictional work teams (fire, EMS, HR, legal, finance, facilities, IT and communications) have been meeting since December and will continue through January 2027. "We are looking for action on the contracts, which would then be forthcoming through to the Common Council meeting on February 24," Weiss said, noting the March 31 innovation grant application deadline.
The agreement includes a $1,000,000 equity contribution from each municipality (a $2,000,000 pool) intended as a startup cash cushion so the Joint Fire Department can meet early…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
