The City of Meadow Lake opted against hiring a full-time building official and relieving the current fire chief of those duties. (Elliott Knopp/meadowlakeNOW Staff)

By Elliott Knopp

Building Official

Meadow Lake declines hiring full-time Building Official

Jan 26, 2022 | 3:15 PM

Meadow Lake City Council has decided not to separate Fire Chief Neil Marsh from his secondary role as a building official.

In recent budget meetings, the city looked into the various outcomes that could happen if council decided to relieve Marsh of his duties as a building official so he could dedicate his time to the fire department.

This stems from Marsh’s request last year to do so as he detailed how the current system’s time requirements exceed available resources with the current staff levels.

In a document filed to the city, Marsh stated the ongoing arrangement is unsustainable and could be harmful to the city.

“The fire department requires the full-time attention of a qualified fire chief in order to fulfill its obligations and at least some of the desired improvements in its service,” he stated. “There is not nearly enough time for one person to adequately accomplish all of the tasks required by these combined roles.”

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“Whether considered from the viewpoint of safety, quality of service provided, or job satisfaction, the current situation is detrimental to the city.”

Marsh later explained while there are some municipalities with fire chiefs acting as building officials as well, those individuals are complemented by a deputy chief who also acts in both capacities.

During Monday’s budget meeting, members of council discussed the financial implications tied to the move. Breaking up the responsibilities was estimated to cost the city $105,200 in the first year. The five-year average evened out to nearly $82,500 per year.

As council examined the move, the concern around how they would justify the spending to taxpayers became a primary focus of discussion. Coun. Mauri Young questioned whether the move could be handled differently by redirecting funds elsewhere.

“I just can’t really see it as a full-time position,” she said. “It’d be really nice if we could put more money toward Public Works to help them out on the street instead of filling in the office.”

Coun. Conrad Read inquired if administration knew what other cities were paying building officials. City manager Diana Burton responded by saying there was some information, but not enough to complete an accurate assessment.

After further discussion on the move regarding potential income and cost of services, future development of the role and possible alternate arrangements, the motion was defeated by a split decision with three members in favour of the change and three others against.

—

elliott.knopp@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @ElliottKnopp