WINNING NARRATIVE 2008



Project Description
* Please indicate which of these Target Capabilities your request outlined in this application will satisfy. Check all that
apply:
* Please provide your narrative statement in the space provided below. Include in your narrative, details regarding (1)
your project’s description and budget, (2) your organization’s financial need, (3) the benefit to be derived from the cost
of your project, and (4) how the activities requested in your application will help your organization’s daily operations and
how this grant will protect life and property.

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XXX is a small farming community located about XX miles northwest of St Paul/Minneapolis Minnesota.
The sixteen members of XXX Fire and Rescue proudly offer fire protection and emergency medical service to our
136 square mile service area with very limited and very old resources.


PROJECT DESCRIPTION AND BUDGET:
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Our fire service area has been reduced within this service area because our equipment is not up to standards. A risk
analysis was recently completed by our officers and city officials to determine a list of priorities to upgrade our
department and improve firefighter safety and service to our community.

XXX Fire and Rescue currently has a small fleet of emergency vehicles that includes a 1957 GMC pumper, a 1967
International non-compliant converted bulk milk truck as a tanker, a 1964 Chevrolet non-compliant converted bulk fuel
truck as a tanker, a 1977 non-compliant converted military Dodge grass rig (from DNR), and a 1972 Chevrolet
non-compliant converted bread truck equipment van.

If we ever run out of bailing wire we are in big trouble keeping them on the road.

This new pumper will help us provide better local protection and assistance to our mutual aid partners.

XXX Fire and Rescue requests grant funds to seriously upgrade this department with the purchase of a new, NFPA,
OSHA, and DOT compliant pumper / tanker with 1250 GPM pump, 2000 gallon water tank, diesel engine, and
automatic transmission.

PROJECT BUDGET:
----------------
Pumper: $261,500 (NFPA 1901 compliant to include 1250 GPM pump, 2000 gallon water tank, diesel engine,
automatic transmission, portable tank, foam unit, generator w/scene lights, hose, nozzles, rear dump system, and
ladders)

Builder visits: $1,500
EVOC class: $3,500

Total Project Cost: $266,500
Grant Writer: $300
Total Grant Request: $266,800
City Share: $13,340 (5%)
Federal Grant Share: $253,460 (95%)


FINANCIAL NEED:
----------------
XXX is a small community with a very limited budget. Financial support from higher government has decreased while
the cost for fuel, services, repair parts, and insurance continues to rise. We strive to be reasonable and fair with the
distribution of city funds to provide necessary services to our community. However, considering the size of our total
revenues, extra funds for this purchase are not available. We have been trying to save for years to purchase a used
apparatus and the amount saved thus far will not come close to achieving that goal.

Another financial detriment to the community is the decline in the farm economy and the changes taking place in farming
practices. Many large grain farms have been converted to Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) acreage. This has
increased the threat of severe wildland fires and has reduced the financial ability to deal with it.

XXX was once an active agricultural town with a rail road depot, lumber yard, implement dealer, creamery, grocery
store school, post office, two churches, and two cafes. With the loss of all of these, the economic status of the
community has reduced the opportunity to procure outside funds that could assist in a project of this magnitude.

The City of XXX reviewed the proposed project budget and planned to make an offer of additional matching funds.
After finding out that the annual cost of insurance on this new vehicle would be nearly $1,900, the city council decided it
would be impossible to add additional matching funds.

The City of XXX and XXX Fire and Rescue do not have the funds necessary to purchase this apparatus and without
federal grant assistance, our firefighters will continue to operate at high risk and our community will not have adequate
fire protection.

CITY BUDGET:
Revenues: $27,167
Expenses: General government - $6,528 (29.0%)
Public safety - $8,963 (39.8%)
Public works - $5,326 (23.7%)
Culture / Recreation - $1,726 (7.7%)

FIRE DEPARTMENT BUDGET:
Revenues: $7,524
Expenses: Repairs - $277 (3.7%)
Fuels - $1,408 (18.7%)
Supplies - $697 (9.3%)
Property maintenance - $2,233 (29.7%)
Utilities - $540 (7.2%)
Training - $435 (5.8%)
Rent - $100 (1.3%)
Insurance - $1,433 (19.1%)
Misc - $401 (5.3%)


COST / BENEFIT:
---------------
Firefighter safety will improve immensely with the addition of a new pumper to our department. Interior attack will
become possible, giving us a better capability of saving lives and property.

A reliable pumper with greater capabilities will improve fire protection to our service area. Response time will decrease
because a reliable, capable apparatus will be located in the center of our service area, reducing travel time.

Mutual aid will still be necessary; however, our initial attack will be much more effective and efficient. This apparatus
will be called to use more often because we will gain our fire service area back, and also we will be called more often
for mutual aid service with XXX, XXX, and XXX because we have an effective apparatus with multiple
capabilities. It can be used as a pumper or tanker, whichever is necessary at the incident.

The 1957 pumper has a 500 GPM pump and a 500 gallon water tank and does not provide adequate protection for our
firefighters or service to our community. A serious problem for our department is finding parts for a 50 year old
apparatus.

Our 1967 tanker is a converted bulk milk truck that carries 1500 gallons of water. The 1964 tanker is a converted bulk
fuel truck that carries 1200 gallons of water. This vehicle is a stub-nose and is a challenge to drive because the
steering linkage is badly worn and replacement parts are nearly impossible to find. This vehicle is not safe to operate;
however, it is necessary to keep it in service at this time.

It is obvious that XXX Fire and Rescue is not NFPA and OSHA compliant with these vehicles and therefore cannot
provide adequate safety for our firefighters.

XXX Fire and Rescue proposes to remedy these inefficiencies through the purchase of a 1250 GPM pumper with a
2000 gallon water tank that meets NFPA, OSHA and DOT standards.

The 1250 GPM pump will provide adequate firefighter protection and the 2000 gallon water tank would remove the
1964 tanker from service. The new pumper and the 1967 tanker will provide a large enough water supply to allow time
for mutual aid to respond from XXX, XXX, and XXX. The 1957 Chevrolet pumper will continue to serve as a
back-up pumper.

This will provide faster, more reliable, and more capable fire protection to our service area that is currently being
covered by other departments. Our rural area is currently being protected by XXX and XXX, both ten miles
away.

We will provide faster service from our location with the aid of better equipment. We have been told by our mutual aid
partners that we are not being utilized because our equipment is too old and too small to be effective.

Our average fleet age is 39.6 years old. The tankers and pumper average 44.3 years old. Our call volume will increase
with the return of our fire service area and the addition of mutual aid service requests.

If this grant request is not awarded our firefighters’ safety will not improve and interior attack will not be attempted.
Our fire suppression tactics will continue to be inefficient and ineffective, lives will continue to be at risk, and property
loss will not improve.

Slow response time from neighboring communities, because of distance involved, will continue to jeopardize residents in
our service area.


STATEMENT OF EFFECT:
--------------------
A more reliable pumper in our department will allow us to employ many different options in fire suppression tactics.
Because this vehicle will be closer to residences in our service area, call time will be reduced. Instead of waiting fifteen
minutes or more for XXX or XXX, we can be on scene in about five minutes.

We will be able to attempt interior attack because of the increase in firefighter safety. Our trained firefighters will have
the opportunity to accomplish fire tactics that are not being attempted with the vehicles we currently have, solely based
on their capabilities and reliability.

Interior attack, initial attack, search and rescue, ventilation, and salvage and overhaul will all be possibilities with the
addition of this new pumper.

Simply put, this new apparatus will allow our trained firefighters to accomplish their job efficiently and effectively in a
safe manner, thus improving protection of life and property.

We will continue to rely heavily on mutual aid to assist us, but we will be able to provide an effective initial attack, which
plays a crucial role in fire incidents.

Our department will provide a versatile vehicle for mutual aid calls, and be capable of taking on the role of tanker or
pumper, depending on the needs of the incident. Brooten, Glenwood, and Villard will call on our assistance because we
will have an apparatus that can provide a valuable service.

The City of XXX, XXX Fire and Rescue, and its surrounding service area would like to thank you for the opportunity
to apply for this federal grant assistance.

Without this help a project like this cannot be accomplished.