City of Redwood City Core Purpose:

Build a great community together.

Redwood City Fire Department Mission Statement:

To protect life, property, and the environment from fire, medical, disaster, and hazardous materials related incidents through
emergency mitigation, public education and code enforcement
Page 7 of 20
 Section 2: Full Service Delivery Proposal 

The total cost for this service is proposed to be $5,889,496.92 which will be fully explained later
in this document. The full service delivery proposal essentially expands the service area for
Redwood City Fire Department (RCFD) to include San Carlos. This will provide for the staffing
of two engine companies, Truck Company services, Fire Prevention services, and for general
oversight and management to be provided by the Redwood City Command and support staff for
San Carlos. The economic advantage will be achieved through the reduction of BSCFD
Command and associated staff including the Fire Chief, Battalion Chiefs (3), Fire Marshal, Fire
Inspectors (2), and Administrative staff. It is recommended that this process be conducted
through attrition to reduce the impact to the current BSCFD employees and ensure a smooth
transition. The costs described below do not include the attrition of BSCFD employees. The
attrition costs are the responsibility of San Carlos and will need to be identified during the
contract development process.

Operations and Emergency Response

Engine Company Service

This proposal includes emergency and non-emergency services provided by two fully staffed
Advanced Life Support (ALS) engine companies with three personnel responding out of the two
existing San Carlos fire stations. Fire Station 13 located at 525 Laurel Street and Fire Station 16
located at 1280 Alameda de las Pulgas. Staffing will include a Fire Captain, Firefighter
Paramedic and a Firefighter Engineer.

Truck Company Service

Aerial Truck service is essential to emergency response and will be provided by four firefighters
staffing Redwood City “Truck 9” out of Fire Station 9 (755 Marshall Street). Typical
responsibilities of Truck Company personnel include conducting primary search of fire building,
rescuing trapped victims, ventilation, forcible entry, laddering the fire building, checking for fire
extension, accessing concealed spaces, providing ladder-pipe water application, providing above
ground access, extricating victims from vehicle collisions with the Jaws of Life, and performing
complex rope and other technical rescue operations. Truck Company functions are essential to
support suppression efforts of Engine Company personnel. Aerial Truck response is required for
structure fires in the region.

Battalion Chief Service

Daily supervision and incident scene management will be provided by Redwood City Fire
Department Battalion Chiefs, “Battalion 3” out of Fire Station 9 (755 Marshall Street). The
Operations Battalion Chiefs work 24-hour shifts on a three platoon system, which provides 24
hour/ 365 day coverage. The on-duty Battalion Chief will be responsible for coordinating the
daily staffing of all fire companies including the two engine companies in San Carlos. The
Redwood City Fire Chief resides locally and can provide additional 24/7 oversight when
necessary.
City of Redwood City Core Purpose:
Build a great community together.

Redwood City Fire Department Mission Statement:

To protect life, property, and the environment from fire, medical, disaster, and hazardous materials related incidents through
emergency mitigation, public education and code enforcement
Page 8 of 20
Fire Administration and Support

Administrative and support activities will be provided by Redwood City Fire Department
administrative staff which includes the Fire Chief, one Administrative Assistant, one
Administrative Secretary and one Secretary working out of Redwood City Fire Administration
Offices (755 Marshall Street). Administrative and management support is provided by one of the
Battalion Chiefs assigned to rotating 24 hour shifts.

Administrative and management activities will include budget administration, records

management, incident reporting, quarterly data analysis of emergency and non-emergency
activities, personnel administration, cost accounting, and other services necessary to administer a
full-service emergency services system.

Fire Prevention and Investigation Services

This proposal also includes the cost of one fulltime Fire Inspector assigned to San Carlos as well
as the associated overhead and Fire Marshal oversight costs. The Fire Marshal will be located at
Redwood City Fire Administration (755 Marshall Street). The fire prevention workload for San
Carlos will need to be analyzed to determine if addition capacity is required to be added to fully
serve the needs of San Carlos. Some of the services to evaluate are; plan checking, permit
management, fire code enforcement, public education, fire investigation services etc.

The following activities will be provided with this proposal:

• Wildland urban interface inspections and enforcement
• State and local mandated fire and life safety inspections
• Plan Checking
• New construction inspections
• Builder consultation
• Coordination and management of Company Inspection Program
• Develop and provide public education services
• Fire cause and origin determination and investigation of fires within San Carlos
• Inspection, clearance, and issuance of fire permits
• Serve as a staff member within the San Carlos emergency operations center (EOC)
during EOC activations and training exercises

Training

This proposal includes training services provided by a Redwood City Battalion Chief assigned to
the Training Division. The services provided will include the full array of mandatory training
including, but not limited to: personnel development, fireground operations, emergency
management, confined space, apparatus operations, safety, live fire training, and other subject
matter as needed by the organization. Redwood City and Belmont San Carlos Fire personnel
already share an excellent working relationship. Training activities, schedule coordination, and
City of Redwood City Core Purpose:
Build a great community together.

Redwood City Fire Department Mission Statement:

To protect life, property, and the environment from fire, medical, disaster, and hazardous materials related incidents through
emergency mitigation, public education and code enforcement
Page 9 of 20
emergency response to complex incidents are currently provided by the Redwood City Battalion
Chief assigned as the Training Officer, under contract with BSCFD. The existing agreement will
be restructured to be included within the scope of this proposal when accepted.

Emergency Medical Services Oversight and Training

This proposal includes the services of an Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Battalion Chief.
The Chief Officer is provided by Woodside Fire Protection District and is currently shared by
Woodside, Redwood City and the Belmont San Carlos Fire Department. The EMS Battalion
Chief provides day to day oversight of the Paramedic and Emergency Medical Technician
program and provides EMS training as required. The existing agreement will be restructured to
be included within the scope of this proposal when accepted.

City of Redwood City Core Purpose:

Build a great community together.

Redwood City Fire Department Mission Statement:

To protect life, property, and the environment from fire, medical, disaster, and hazardous materials related incidents through
emergency mitigation, public education and code enforcement
Page 10 of 20
 Section 3: Costing Methodology 

Methodology
In an attempt to provide a comprehensive picture of fire service delivery costs, this proposal
bundles all costs associated with the support and direct delivery of emergency response. The
figures are intended to represent a “total cost of ownership”. The budget for Redwood City Fire is
predictable in that overhead costs are annualized and we have developed replacement plans for
most types of capital equipment as well as for smaller items. Although this is not an exact
representation of what the absolute cost of delivery will be, it represents all costs anticipated that
go beyond salary and benefit comparisons. All costs are calculated using Redwood City Fire
Department salary schedule and Budget for Fiscal year 2011/2012.

A linear approach was applied to position costs. For instance, because the predictable overhead
has been included in the total cost of deployment, a Battalion Chief position is represented at the
same rate as a firefighter through averaging. This may appear as an over generalization, but
because the firefighter position requires supervision by a Captain, and the Captain requires
supervision and management provided by the Battalion Chief, a piece of the overall budget for
each position is distributed to the other positions.

The cost of deployment described in this document is generated from daily staffed positions. A
daily staffed position consists of three platoons (A, B, C) necessary to cover the position every
day of the year plus a backfill factor of 16%. We do not know what the productive work time
(time spent at work minus leave) factor is for the BSCFD workforce, so we applied a calculation
based upon our experience over several years in Redwood City. The deployment costs also
include general liability insurance, workers compensation cost projections and other internal
services currently provided by other Redwood City departments/divisions;

• City Manager (as the central reporting point for the fire chief and for oversight)
• City Clerk
• City Attorney
• Finance Department
• Apparatus Maintenance
• Facility Maintenance
• Human Resource Department
• Information Technology

City of Redwood City Core Purpose:

Build a great community together.

Redwood City Fire Department Mission Statement:

To protect life, property, and the environment from fire, medical, disaster, and hazardous materials related incidents through
emergency mitigation, public education and code enforcement
Page 11 of 20
Financial Calculations
In preparing this information for San Carlos, it was extremely important to us that we make
every attempt at providing financial calculations that represent all costs identifiable at this point
in the process. The fire service is not an industry driven by free-market economics, so the cost of
doing business should be represented in terms of a fully-burdened projected budget. There is
nothing to be gained by underestimating the total cost of operation and customer expectation.

Cost calculations for 24hour shift personnel with backfill factor of 16%
24hour Battalion Chief
Cost
+ 16% backfill
Rank (Base Total Cost
(OT rate x 467 hrs)
Salary+Fringe)
Battalion Chief $248,477.00 $24,405.42 $272,882.42
Annualized cost to staff one 24-Hour Battalion Chief position : $818,647.26

3-Person Company, using proposed 2011-12 salary costs

Cost
+ 16% backfill
Rank (position) (Base Total Cost
(OT rate x 467 hrs)
Salary+Fringe)
Captain $204,352.00 $32,008.18 $236,360.18
Firefighter $174,113.00 $26,726.41 $200,839.41
Firefighter/Paramedic $174,113.00 $26,726.41 $200,839.41
Cost per Platoon: $638,039.00
Annualized cost per Engine Company: $1,914,117.00

4-Person Company, using proposed 2011-12 salary costs

Cost
+ 16% backfill
Rank (position) (Base Salary+ Total Cost
(OT rate x 467 hrs)
Fringe)
Captain $204,352.00 $32,696.32 $236,360.18
Firefighter $174,113.00 $27,858.08 $200,839.41
Firefighter $174,113.00 $27,858.08 $200,839.41
Firefighter/Paramedic $174,113.00 $27,858.08 $200,839.41
Cost per Platoon: $838,878.41
Annualized Cost per Truck Company: $2,516,635.23

*How average backfill costs are calculated:

24 hours/day x 365 days/year = 8,760 hours (total hours budgeted per year per budgeted seat
8,760 hrs/3 budgeted FTE’s per seat = 2,920 hours (total hours budgeted per year per FTE
2,920 hours x 16% average backfill rate = 467 hours of OT needed, on average, per year per FTE
(Note: Ten years of historical leave usage trends shows average of 16% coverage used per FTE per year)

City of Redwood City Core Purpose:

Build a great community together.

Redwood City Fire Department Mission Statement:

To protect life, property, and the environment from fire, medical, disaster, and hazardous materials related incidents through
emergency mitigation, public education and code enforcement
Page 12 of 20
 Cost Calculations including overhead & coverage of a 24 hour Battalion Chief
and Fire Prevention Services

(1) Calculate average 'cost per seat' by adding together Administration budget (62210), Operations
Budget (62220) and the salary costs for Training Chief (.33 BC) and EMS Chief (.33 BC).
Then divide this total by 18 (RCF's Minimum Daily Staffing number)
2011/12 BC Position salary+fringe+backfill: $272,882.42
.33 BC (TO) = $90,051.20
. .33 BC(EMS) = $90,051.20
Subtotal of EMS and TO positions= (A) $180,102.40
Administration Budget (62210) = (B) $908,571.00
Operations Budget (62220) = (C) $13,671,733
Total cost of A thru C = $14,760,406.40
To get avg. cost per seat, divide by 18 = $820,022.58

Avg. Cost for 3-person company: $2,460,067.73

Avg. Cost for 4-person company: $3,280,090.31

Inclusion of THREE FPO's AND ONE FIRE MARSHAL

(2) Calculate average 'cost-per-staff' for Fire Prevention Bureau (62230)
62230 Supplies and Services Budget: $36,863.00
Use salary/fringe costs for 3
FPOs and 1 Fire Marshal:
FPO: $157,739.00 mult. by 3 = $473,217.00
Fire Marshal: $248,477
Fire Prevention Employee Total Cost = $721,694
Divide by
Employee Cost + Supplies and Services= $758,557 *1/3rd $250,323.00
*Extension of service into San Carlos is estimated to require the addition of
33% to the RCFD’s existing capacity

City of Redwood City Core Purpose:

Build a great community together.

Redwood City Fire Department Mission Statement:

To protect life, property, and the environment from fire, medical, disaster, and hazardous materials related incidents through
emergency mitigation, public education and code enforcement
Page 13 of 20
 Cost of Service Calculations for Capacity to Serve San Carlos

Engine Company Costs $2,460,067.73 *2 Engine companies $4,920,135.46

Truck Company Costs $2,516,635.23 **2/7th cost model $719,038.63

Fire Prevention Costs

Fire Marshal and 3 Fire 1/3 cost for service to
Prevention Officers $758,557 San Carlos $250,323

Total Service Costs (summarized)

Engine Company Cost (2) $4,920,135.46

Truck Company Costs (2/7th) $719,038.46

Fire Prevention Costs

(1 FPO and overhead) $250,323.00

$5,889,496.92

* Fully -burdened cost with overhead includes B/C’s (Training, EMS, Operations) and Admin Support.

** Truck Company costs are calculated by spreading the cost of coverage by fire station district.
Redwood City has five districts and the proposal for coverage in San Carlos will add two, bringing the total number of districts
to be covered by Redwood City to seven. Since the cost of Truck service is calculated per district cost,
th
San Carlos’ share will be 2/7 of Redwood City’s total cost of coverage.

City of Redwood City Core Purpose:

Build a great community together.

Redwood City Fire Department Mission Statement:

To protect life, property, and the environment from fire, medical, disaster, and hazardous materials related incidents through
emergency mitigation, public education and code enforcement
Page 14 of 20
 Section 4: Items not addressed in this Proposal 

Fire Stations
This proposal does not include upgrades or repairs to San Carlos Fire Stations or other associated
facilities. It is anticipated that the Fire Stations will remain the responsibility of the city of San
Carlos and the Fire Service provider will not be responsible for their upkeep or repair. It is also
anticipated that the City of Redwood City will not be charged rent for use of these facilities. City
of San Carlos shall maintain stations in a similar fashion to existing conditions, and consistent
with the working environment of Redwood City fire stations. Mandated and safety upgrades
shall be provided by the City of San Carlos.

Fire Apparatus, Equipment and Tools

This proposal includes replacement and maintenance of fire equipment and tools, but does not
include replacement of fire apparatus. Fire apparatus replacement costs will need to be
determined to accurately provide a cost moving forward. Assumptions are that capital
expenditures for new equipment, major tools and hose are not immediate and that accounts will
be established for future acquisitions.

Redwood City assumes no financial or ownership responsibility for the Truck currently under
contract to be constructed for BSCFD. Fire apparatus provided by San Carlos will be maintained
by Redwood City’s fleet management program. San Carlos will be responsible for all initial
repairs to bring San Carlos apparatus into alignment with the level of condition and preventive
maintenance provided to Redwood City apparatus. San Carlos shall provide for maintenance and
replacement of fire apparatus at the same intervals as Redwood City apparatus. There will be no
difference between risk management and maintenance practices between apparatus stationed in
San Carlos or Redwood City.

Emergency Preparedness
This proposal does not include emergency preparedness (also referred as “Disaster
preparedness”) oversight, training or implementation. Redwood City will work with San Carlos
staff to analyze emergency preparedness needs for the city and will work with officials to
prioritize programs or elements deemed necessary for implementation.

Hazardous Material Response

This proposal does not address the staffing and readiness of the Hazardous Materials Unit
currently operated by BSCFD. The Hazardous Materials Response element is within the purview
of the County of San Mateo and County officials should be consulted to determine service
delivery options moving forward. San Mateo County’s Hazardous Material response model is
extremely cost effective and should not be altered. After careful analysis is made, the
City of Redwood City Core Purpose:
Build a great community together.

Redwood City Fire Department Mission Statement:

To protect life, property, and the environment from fire, medical, disaster, and hazardous materials related incidents through
emergency mitigation, public education and code enforcement
Page 15 of 20
responsibility can be shifted to another interested fire agency with the capability and personnel to
adequately perform the service. Redwood City will not assume responsibility for this program
under this proposal, or any past or future liabilities associated with the hazardous materials
response agreement with the County of San Mateo.

Transition Costs
Each of the costs expressed in this document are considered “go-forward” costs, which means
that transition costs have not been developed for workforce assimilation, infrastructure and
apparatus repair/replacement, technology integration/upgrades, etc. This can only be done when
specific services and expectations are defined.

City of Redwood City Core Purpose:

Build a great community together.

Redwood City Fire Department Mission Statement:

To protect life, property, and the environment from fire, medical, disaster, and hazardous materials related incidents through
emergency mitigation, public education and code enforcement
Page 16 of 20
 Section 5: Terms and Annual Costs Increase 

Term

The term of this proposed contract is three years from the time it is executed by both parties.

Annual Cost Increase

The total cost of this proposal will increase annually by 5%. If there are unforeseen costs
incurred by Redwood City due to such things as CalPERS rate increases or new state mandates,
the parties agree to renegotiate the annual increase to capture these unanticipated expenses.

City of Redwood City Core Purpose:

Build a great community together.

Redwood City Fire Department Mission Statement:

To protect life, property, and the environment from fire, medical, disaster, and hazardous materials related incidents through
emergency mitigation, public education and code enforcement
Page 17 of 20
 Section 6: Employees and Administrative Oversight 

Employees
The impact of this process to the current employees of the Belmont San Carlos Fire Department
cannot be ignored. It is Redwood City’s intention to minimize the impact as much as possible,
but no guarantees about employment are provided in this proposal. Some of the economies
contained in this proposal can only be achieved through a reduction of the current BSCFD
workforce, such as those positions associated with the reduction of the current 24-hour Battalion
4 BC position (3), fourth firefighter position on T13 when T13 converts to E13 (3); one Fire
Inspector (1); reduction of one secretary (1); and reduction of the Fire Chief (1).

The hiring process will involve Redwood City interviewing existing BSCFD employees for
potential employment by the City of Redwood City. Redwood City will utilize an existing
“lateral” hiring process and all potential employees will be subject to all of the conditions of the
process including pre-employment screening and medical evaluation. The specific number of
BSCFD employees employed by Redwood City will be determined after the preliminary hiring
process is concluded. It is anticipated that the actual number hired will be between 18 and 21
suppression personnel and one fire prevention personnel.

Consideration will be provided to allow former BSCFD employees to retain former leave
balances, but San Carlos will be responsible to fund these liabilities upon transition. Future leave
allowances will be provided with recognition to total time in service, but seniority, for the sake
of bumping, and lay-off, will start with employment by the City of Redwood City. Specifics of
assimilation of BSCFD employees into RCFD will need to be defined during the contract
development process.

Administrative Oversight

The control of administrative oversight, emergency operations and routine fire service functions
for the City of San Carlos will be managed by the Redwood City Fire Chief. The Fire Chief
reports directly to the City Manager of Redwood City for budget, management, emergency
response and system delivery. San Carlos and Redwood City officials will need to work out
specifics of lines of authority and chain of command between the two Cities. During the
November 3, 2010 proposer’s meeting it was mentioned that the successor fire chief would
“have a seat at the table” with other San Carlos department heads. This may be an appropriate
and constructive method to keep the needs of San Carlos in the forefront, but will not work as a
budget management process. Rates established by Redwood City will need to be negotiated
between the City of San Carlos and the Redwood City Manager and City Council.

City of Redwood City Core Purpose:

Build a great community together.

Redwood City Fire Department Mission Statement:

To protect life, property, and the environment from fire, medical, disaster, and hazardous materials related incidents through
emergency mitigation, public education and code enforcement
Page 18 of 20
 Section 7: Summary of Proposal Costs for City of San Carlos 

Total cost for Full Service Delivery proposal:

• Engine Companies (2): $4,920,135.46

• Truck Company Service: $ 719, 038.46

• Fire Prevention Services: $ 250,323.00

• Total Cost: $5,889,496.92

City of Redwood City Core Purpose:

Build a great community together.

Redwood City Fire Department Mission Statement:

To protect life, property, and the environment from fire, medical, disaster, and hazardous materials related incidents through
emergency mitigation, public education and code enforcement
Page 19 of 20
 Appendix A: Letter of Support  

City of Redwood City Core Purpose:

Build a great community together.

Redwood City Fire Department Mission Statement:

To protect life, property, and the environment from fire, medical, disaster, and hazardous materials related incidents through
emergency mitigation, public education and code enforcement
Page 20 of 20