MOUNT VERNON — The city is in the midst of strategic and long-term planning for the Mount Vernon Fire Department.
“We started our talks for the East Side fire station, so that’s starting to happen. We’re excited about that,” Fire Chief Chad Christopher said.
“We’re nearing completion of our three-year outline and a strategic plan for the Mount Vernon Fire Department. That will be completed by the end of this week.”
The city bought land on the corner of Upper Gilchrist and Yauger roads in February 2024 for a second fire station. The city paid $297,500 for the 2.719-acre parcel.
Mayor Matt Starr previously said 51 percent of the city’s EMS runs are on the east side. Nearly one-third are on Yauger Road.
The department handled 476 emergency calls in August. That brings the yearly total to 4,214 and is about the same pace as last year.
Joshua Steele joined the department as a full-time firefighter EMT after being in the part-time program for about a year. He is enrolled in paramedic school.
The chief anticipates hiring a full-time employee in the Fire Prevention Bureau by the end of September. City council members approved the new position in July.
The new hire will help fire marshal Terry Davis with fire inspections, education, and training.
September training covers search and rescue for fire personnel, while EMS training focuses on toxicology.
The Ohio Fire Academy will teach aerial operations training Sept. 10-12. Aerial operations involve the ladder truck and operations working off the ground.
MVFD grants and miscellaneous news
The department received a Bureau of Workers’ Compensation grant for a Lucas device.
A Lucas device is an automatic external chest compression system. All medics have them on board, but they need to be updated.
•The Columbus Aladdin Shriners provided a grant for a fast board. A fast board is similar to a backboard that first responders use to extricate children from technical rescue situations.
•Hydrant flushing started in the northern part of the city. The schedule is on the city’s website.
•Department personnel, in conjunction with the Red Cross, installed 73 smoke detectors throughout the county. If anyone needs a smoke detector, call 740-393-9515.
•The department will host an open house on Thursday, Oct. 9, as part of Fire Prevention Week.
Administration
Safety Service Director Tanner Salyers reported that the city launched its deer management permit application.
The permit fee is $20 for in-county residents and $100 for those residing outside of Knox County.
Regarding personnel, the administration is working with human resources and the auditor’s office to establish a 457B Roth IRA program.
On Tuesday, the Municipal Tech Board voted to recommend a cybersecurity policy to city council at council’s Sept. 8 meeting.
“You will see a piece of legislation that basically mirrors the policies recommended by the Ohio revised code,” Salyers said.
“We’ve been working closely with both the Municipal Tech Board and county IT on that, and part of that law is adopting a cyber security policy.”
That policy includes guidelines on how to handle ransomware attacks and other security issues.
MVPD
Assistant Chief Andy Burns said the Mount Vernon Police Department responded to 1,554 calls for service in August.
Calls included 560 traffic stops, which Burns said is the department’s single largest activity category.
The calls include 39 non-injury and nine injury crashes, 98 suspicious person and 46 suspicious vehicle calls.
“We had about the same high volume for suspicious activity. Disturbances and disputes are still ongoing. That doesn’t really change month to month,” Burns said.
Relating to mental health and welfare, the MVPD had six suicide attempts or threats, three mental health calls, and about 40 welfare checks.
“That’s consistent and justifies that crisis intervention that we’ve worked so hard to build and what we continue to expand on,” the assistant chief said.
Burns said officers increased their warrant services. That is due in part to other agencies or probation contacting the MVPD, but also because the officers can run a “zip list” showing active warrants.
“Generally our guys are keeping track of their case loads, and they know who hasn’t shown up to report, and they know when warrants are issued,” Burns explained.
“So, collaborating within the department and with other agencies makes that possible. It’s a team effort, each shift, each squad going out and looking for those warrants.”
The floor plan for the new police station is about 95-percent complete.
“We’ve been tweaking that and customizing that. That’s been a collaborative effort with all of our personnel,” Burns said.
“We’re real pleased we got to do the site visit, and now we’re working on some of the other things like the interior elements and what that exterior look like.”
MVPD grants and miscellaneous news
Grant reporting is ongoing for the crisis intervention and other programs.
Recent training includes driver’s training at Hiawatha Water Park.
Upcoming training includes leadership and policing, death notifications, trauma, and wellness strategies. The training is open to law enforcement officers outside of Knox County.
An officer is training with Boss, the department’s third K-9.
Code enforcement
City Inspector Scott Zimmerman is working on guidelines for water and sewage hauling. Guidelines include a permitting aspect for haulers to register with the city.
“We just need to make sure that once the water leaves our control, that it is known that it is their responsibility after that,” Zimmerman said. “The sewage is very similar; a lot of out of the city and county area haulers bring things in. We’re going to work on a permitting system with that.”
Zimmerman said he will also look at rates as the city has not updated them for quite some time. He anticipates having guidelines in the next 30 to 60 days.
The code enforcement department will also assume responsibility for the permitting and inspections for waste haulers. Previously, the MVPD handled those responsibilities.
Another area Zimmerman is focusing on is yard sales.
“We’ve been working on some administrative guidelines for yard and garage sales so we don’t end up with a bunch of flea markets,” he said. “I think that’s going to be a positive asset to our city as well.”
Zimmerman said some residents are confused about when zoning regulations require a permit for projects.
He encouraged residents to call engineering (740-393-3246) or code enforcement (740-393-9577) for guidance.
Property maintenance
Assistant City Inspector Brian Marvin said that he and Zimmerman have opened 418 cases involving property maintenance issues since April.
That compares to 400 in 2024.
“I understand the general public may be feeling a little pressure from this just because we’re maybe lifting the standards a bit, but I just would like everyone to know that these were laws that were already on the books. We’re just actually holding people to the existing ordinances,” Marvin said.
He said 95 percent of individuals complied willingly with regulations and another 2 percent complied with slight push-back.
Marvin initially focused on removing abandoned and inoperable vehicles. The city has removed about 70 vehicles thus far.
His next step is to move into building maintenance.
“We have a lot of dilapidated and failing structures around the city, some abandoned homes,” he said. “My next phase of operations would be as we go through the winter time to address all of those old buildings and start getting something done with those.”
Marvin said the city still has its vacant property registry. However, there are gray areas that are hard to work with, he said.
“Right now, I’m actively not digging into that too hard until I can find a way to clean it up a little bit,” he said.