The City of Butler and Butler Township are planning to hire a joint fire chief who will then serve both municipalities.
“The fire chief will be a full-time employee who oversees the Butler Bureau of Fire as well as the three volunteer fire stations in Butler Township,” Butler Mayor Ben Smith said Tuesday during a joint meeting between Butler City and Township officials. “We intend to enter into this agreement because we believe both municipalities will better be able to serve their communities and taxpayers by doing so.”
Each municipality will introduce an ordinance reflecting the intergovernmental agreement at their meetings later this month before taking action to finalize the arrangement in July.
The exact job description for the position is still being determined but the amount of money each municipality will pay toward salary and benefits will depend on the amount of time the new joint chief spends working in each area.
The city of Butler has been without a fire chief for over two years while the three Butler Township Volunteer Fire Departments each have a chief who coordinates that department but does not have anything to do with the others.
According to Butler Township Commissioner Dave Zarnick, the new agreement will benefit the residents of both areas.
“This agreement not only strengthens an already solid partnership between Butler City firefighters and Butler Township volunteer firefighters, but makes a tremendous amount of sense in terms of being able to provide greater fire services to our residents within our financial means,” Zarnick said.
Current Butler Township Fire Marshall Chris Switala will continue to remain in his position with duties and responsibilities separate from the new joint chief.
Elected officials and members of local fire companies gather at BC3’s public safety building on Tuesday. (Photo Credit: Ryan Saeler/Butler Radio Network)
