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Fontana, Walworth proceed on fire/rescue plan

FONTANA — After suggesting a few weeks ago that creating a joint, paid-on-premises fire and rescue service was not a priority for his department, Fontana Fire Chief Wolfgang Nitsch is plowing through the proposal as if it is.

"I've always said the same thing," he said. "Paid-on-premises will benefit the fire department, but it's not a requirement."

The heads of the fire and rescue departments in Fontana and Walworth on Wednesday began to iron out details of a contract with Metro Paramedic Services of Elmhurst, Ill., to provide the paid-on-premise service.

The villages are closing in on a proposal to create three full-time firefighter/EMT positions to cover the villages during daytime hours, as recommended by a study committee late last year. The full-time staff would supplement volunteer firefighters and EMTs, who would continue to respond to calls in their respective villages.

While in general there aren't enough volunteer firefighters or EMTs to efficiently respond to fire and rescue calls in both villages during peak hours, that's not the case for the Fontana Fire Department.

Nitsch informed the Ad Hoc Joint Services Committee on April 13 that the number of volunteers in his department is up and the number of calls is down, making paid-on-premises a lower priority.

"I felt it was necessary to bring it up … so they know where we're coming from," he said.

Nitsch said it's his job to be up front so ultimately the decision-makers—the village boards, in this case—have all the information necessary to agree on a proposal that's best for both villages.

"I'm not the one who decides whether we do paid-on-premises, whether we do consolidation, whatever we do," he said. "I'm a department head … and the village board looks to me for suggestions."