Captiva fire board approves annual audit, hears update
The Captiva Island Fire Control District’s commissioners signed off on the prior fiscal year’s audit at their recent meeting, as well as received an update on the lease agreement negotiations with the county.
At the June 8 meeting, the commission voted unanimously 3-0 to approve a resolution accepting the financial statements for the district’s fiscal year 2020-21 as audited and prepared by the firm CliftonLarsonAllen. Prior to the vote, principal Chris Kessler with the firm presented the final report.
“The audit was clean,” he said. “No issues.”
Kessler explained that the firm came to a clear opinion in its analysis of the district’s finances, adding that the numbers provided were the actual determined numbers and that there were no adjustments.
“Everything in here is consistent with the prior years,” he said.
Kessler pointed to the comparison of revenues and expenditures on the district’s income statement.
“Everything is pretty consistent year to year,” he said.
Commissioner Jeffrey Brown applauded Fire Chief Jeff Pawul’s handling of the budget.
“You do a pretty good job budgeting,” he said.
Pawul explained that there were some savings not attributable to him. For example, the district was unable to send staff to all of the training that it had planned to because of the ongoing pandemic.
“But we stay very close to what we budget, what we bring in and what we spend,” he said.
Also during the meeting, Pawul provided an update on the ongoing negotiations with Lee County EMS for the housing and staffing of an ambulance at the Captiva station for no less than $3,000 per month.
Currently, the county has one ambulance on Sanibel that provides service to both of the islands.
“We should be fairly close to the end on a lease agreement,” he said.
Pawul explained that county staff agreed to the proposed $3,000 and now they are working on the terms. If an agreement is presented to the county commission, it will be for the 2022-23 budget year.
He noted that if approved, the big issue the county may face is staffing the ambulance.
The commissioners expressed interest in finalizing all of the details by July or August.
Also at the meeting, Pawul provided the commission with an overview of some key components for next year’s budget that will need to be discussed in the coming months. He cited the rising costs of fuel, equipment, repairs and maintenance and suggested creating a long-term plan to address the increase.
Pawul proposed the idea of securing a boat lift for the fire rescue vessel to get the haul out of the saltwater and preserve it, possibly tapping into grant funds to partially cover it. He noted that the frame and floor of the beach rescue vehicle, which is 8 years old, is rusted out and no longer repairable.
“I think we’ve hit the replacement life, not the repair life,” Pawul said.
He pointed to the new, state-mandated performance audit for fire districts, adding that the San Carlos district was quoted at about $70,000 for one and Bonita was quoted between $72,000 and $75,000.
“I really don’t know what to expect on that,” Pawul said. “I’ve got the number set at $50,000.”
He also noted salaries and pay scale raises.
“Personnel is the biggest line item on anybody’s budget,” Pawul said.
IN OTHER NEWS
– Pawul reported that the Captiva fire station was featured in a recent issue of Firehouse magazine. It, along with some others around the state, was highlighted in an article about stations that were designed and constructed to meet the specifics needs of the community and Florida’s extreme weather demands.
– The district responded to 50 calls for service in May.
“At this point, we’re over where we were last year,” he said of comparing the year-to-date numbers.
To reach TIFFANY REPECKI / trepecki@breezenewspapers.com, please email