Eldora council backs interim EMS leadership, authorizes interim director name and plan to reduce active ambulances

Eldora — The city’s council and administration on Tuesday endorsed an interim leadership plan to keep Eldora’s EMS service operating after the recent resignation of department director Owen Spencer and the medical director, Dr. Nick.

At an open workshop, council members said the immediate goal is service continuity while a three‑person leadership team of current staff — Nikki, Brooke and Josh — manage day‑to‑day operations. Council approved a motion, by voice vote, to list Nikki’s name on state paperwork as the interim service director, a formality required by Iowa code. The transcript records the voice vote but does not include a roll‑call tally.

The decision was driven by staffing shortages and budget strains. City officials and EMS staff described a plan to take one of the fleet’s three active ambulances offline (retain the vehicle but not stock or staff it), producing an estimated savings of roughly $50,000 to be reallocated toward recruitment and higher wages for paramedics. “If we don’t put this band‑aid on, service folds,” said Josh, an EMS staff member and paramedic, describing the interim proposal as a temporary measure to bridge the service until permanent leadership and staffing can be secured.

Why it matters: Eldora provides a high share of advanced‑level EMS calls in the county and relies on paid staff as volunteer capacity and neighboring services face similar shortages. Officials warned that if the service were forced to operate without enough paramedics, Eldora could be reduced to a Basic Life Support (BLS) designation for some calls — meaning no paramedic would be on board for those responses — which would change which transfers and transports the service can perform.

Council members and staff said they have approximately 30 days (speakers referenced the statutory timeline during the meeting) to demonstrate reasonable effort to find a replacement medical director; the team said it has target prospects and will start outreach immediately. The city also noted a previously approved GO bond for a new ambulance remains in place and is expected to deliver in roughly the third quarter of next year; that order was not being canceled.

Administration and EMS staff outlined near‑term steps: the leadership trio will begin contacting medical director prospects and ramp up marketing and recruitment; finance staff will model pay changes after auditors finish their review and then present numbers to council in upcoming meetings. Brooke, an EMT on the leadership team, cited a recent statewide pay survey that ranks the local service near the bottom on compensation and hours, and urged council to clarify how much subsidy the city is prepared to provide.

Councilors discussed longer‑term structural options, including a possible merger of fire and EMS to change funding streams (fire levy) and access grant opportunities, but said no final decision has been made and more discussion is expected at future meetings.

The motion recorded in the workshop authorized placing Nikki’s name on the state paperwork as interim service director; the transcript records a voice vote in which councilors said “I,” and the motion carried. The record does not show a roll‑call vote or a numerical tally in the transcript.

What happens next: Staff said they will begin outreach to medical‑director prospects immediately, proceed with recruitment and marketing, and return with proposed pay scenarios within the coming weeks. Council invited regular updates by email or short check‑ins as the team pursues candidates and implements the interim staffing model.