RECOMMENDATIONS

The project's recommendations were developed by the Management Analysis Division and discussed with the advisory committee. Recommendations and criteria for evaluating facility siting, ownership, and operation are grouped into five categories: location, mobile equipment; design, ownership, operation, and funding; and capacity and usage. Most criteria apply to both stationary facilities and mobile equipment, although not all criteria may be relevant in every situation.

LOCATION of FACILITIES

1. Public safety personnel should continue to use the state's situation-specific training facilities for refinery and aircraft burn simulations, as appropriate.  

Some training equipment is so specialized that it is needed in only one location in the state. Some specialized training is needed on a limited basis and does not have to be widely available at various locations. Specific Minnesota facilities include simulated refinery and aircraft burn equipment (at Koch Refinery and Lake Superior College, respectively). Few of these facilities exist nationally. First responders should continue to use these facilities as needed to train them in handling these specific situations.

2. The location of a public safety training facility should ensure cost-efficient, easy access for users and maximum use of the facility, while capitalizing on existing infrastructure or other capital investments where possible.

• First, increased use of an existing facility with time available in its schedule to accommodate additional training exercises—making the facility available to other departments or using it for new types of training on a fee-for-service basis.
• Next, expansion or upgrade of existing facilities—adding new features or buildings to support new or additional training options in an existing site.
• Last, construction of a new facility—building a training facility where no facility exists or where current facilities are inadequate.

3. Priority for new facilities should be given to areas with inadequate or no reasonable access to training facilities.

 

Recommended site-specific components for proposed facilities are:

• written documents showing support of local governments, fire and law enforcement agencies, and private-sector businesses in the area where the facility would be located; 
• documentation of the availability of amenities, such as food and lodging;
• maps showing proximity to major roadways;
• maps of existing or planned infrastructure (streets, water, sewer) to support the facility;
• details showing sufficient land for future expansion; and
• evaluation of neighborhood appropriateness for the facility. An outdoor firing range or live burn facility would create noise and smoke emissions and should not be located in a densely populated area. Siting of indoor ranges and tactical areas is of less concern for the surrounding neighborhood.

Recommended area components for proposed facilities are:

• training resources or facilities already available in the area—nearest facilities that provide similar training;
• deficiencies in current training options that make the facility necessary (distance, cost, availability); and
• number of potential users within 20, 50, and 100 miles of the site and the distance departments are expected to travel for training. If the facility is mobile, how far it will travel to reach its audience.

MOBILE EQUIPMENT

4. Demand for public safety training facilities should be assumed to be from departments within a 100-mile driving distance from the site, unless the siting plan includes a formal commitment from departments willing to travel further to train there.

5. Mobile facilities should be considered in areas where the density of departments within a 100-mile radius is not sufficient to support a fixed facility (at least 75 percent of the hours available for training). Given the experience of MnSCU in operating, maintaining, and managing mobile facilities, local MnSCU institutions should be involved in plans for siting and use of mobile training equipment.

Recommended components for proposed facilities are:

• cost assumptions mobile equipment, including purchase and maintenance costs and costs of personnel needed to manage as well as move and operate the equipment;
• number of training hours offered and how many hours will be spent in transit and maintenance, and
• participating departments and the number of hours or days of training for each. 

DESIGN

6. Public safety training facilities should support safe, realistic training in a controlled environment. Technology should aid in creating more realistic training simulations, while also keeping participating personnel safe from accidents and injuries.

Recommended components for proposed facilities are:

• types of training supported in the facility and how the facility accommodates them; 
• a plan for meeting pollution control and environmental protection agency standards to minimize noise, air, and water pollution from training activities (including lead abatement, content of smoke and vapors released, and soundproofing);
• safety mechanisms for training exercises; and
• technology supported by the facility (audio/visual equipment, teleconferencing, computers, and simulators for driving and firearms) and adaptability for future technological advances in these tools.                                                                 

OWNERSHIP, OPERATION, and FUNDING

7. Additional consideration for funding should be given to facilities with collaborative ownership or operation among federal, state, and local agencies and private-sector organizations, in order to maximize cost-efficiency and use.

8. Multi-purpose facilities should be encouraged, to maximize the potential base of users and spread costs across agencies.

9. The state's role in funding public safety training facilities should ensure that agencies can meet minimum standards for training established by the Peace Officer Standards and Training Board, OSHA, and the National Fire Protection Association.

10. To ensure equal state and local participation in training facilities, state funds should be assumed to provide no more than 50 percent of the total capital costs for the facility and no state subsidy should be provided for the ongoing operation of the facility, unless a state agency is an ongoing partner in the use and operation of the facility.

Recommended components for proposed facilities are:

• a plan for funding the capital and operating costs of the facility, including the costs to each partner and the effects of any fees collected for the use of the facility;
• a fee schedule for the facility, including plans for whether partners funding the facility pay full, partial, or no fee for the use of the facility;
• the proposed legal governing structure for the facility (joint powers agreement, contract), including how management and operational decisions will be made and how the facility will be staffed; and
• calculations of capacity and use estimates for the facility.

This recommendation does not prevent state agencies from contributing operating funding to facilities they lease for training.

CAPACITY and USAGE

11. Facility plans should include mechanisms for marketing and rental of the facility to maximize its use and recover a portion of operating and capital costs.

Recommended components for proposed facilities are:

• a list of Peace Officer Standards and Training Board, OSHA, National Fire Protection Association, and other standards being met through the training supported by the facility;
• the estimated annual number of training hours to be provided at the facility, the number of hours committed to the facility's owners or partners, and the number to be made available to other agencies or groups;
• a marketing plan for ensuring use by outside agencies or groups when it is not in use by its partners; and
• anticipated availability to other public groups, such as state agency training schools (MnSCU, Bureau of Criminal Apprehension) or state and federal agencies.

The  Minnesota State Colleges and Universities are statewide interested parties. The involvement of the state colleges should be addressed in all proposals.