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15 apply for full-time Suamico fire chief

By Kevin Boneske
Staff Writer


SUAMICO – Fifteen people applied to be the village’s full-time fire chief prior to the Nov. 27 application deadline, Village Administrator Alex Kaker reported to the Suamico village board Monday, Dec. 2.

Kaker said most of those applications came from out of state, with a couple of applications in Wisconsin and one applicant internally from the Suamico Fire Department.

The village is now in the process of switching from a part-time to a full-time fire chief, as recommended by a staffing committee, to meet future personnel needs for the fire department, for which plans are also in the works to build a new Fire Station No. 1.

The current part-time chief, Troy Noe, has informed the Fire Commission he will not be pursuing the full-time position.

Noe will serve as the village fire chief until a new full-time chief is hired, and has expressed an interest in remaining with the fire department wherever the new chief would decide is best.

Kaker said the consulting firm the village hired to help select a full-time chief, Public Administration Associates, will now be conduct background checks of the applicants and provide a report later this month to the Fire Commission, which is scheduled to meet Dec. 23.

“Hopefully we’ll have candidates in here the first or second week in January for interviews, and we’ll go from there,” he said.

Fire Commission appointment

A newly appointed member of the Fire Commission, which will select the full-time fire chief, is currently a detective with the Ashwaubenon Department of Public Safety and lives in Suamico.

After accepting the resignation of Randy Christopherson, who is being recognized for his 11 years on the Fire Commission with a $50 gift certificate, the Suamico village board appointed Robert Messer to serve out the remainder of Christopherson’s term running through May 2022.

Messer, who has been a Suamico resident for two years, has 32 years of experience in fire and emergency medical service and also has 24 years of law enforcement experience.

Commission/committee vacancies

The village is also looking to fill openings on other commissions and committees, which Kaker said include an empty seat on the Planning and Zoning Commission, the alternate seat on the Zoning Board of Appeals, two vacancies on the Ethics Board and an opening on the Historical Preservation Commission.

Though the posted deadline to apply for those openings was Friday, Dec. 6, Kaker said the village will take applications for any committee or commission at any time and keep them on file.

He said the application form is to be returned to the village clerk.

Committee downsizing?

Given a lack of applications to fill positions on the village’s commissions and committees, Trustee Sky Van Rossum asked whether the number of people on them and the number of commissions and committees could be reduced.

“I think we need to entertain that idea, because even though these are minimally paid positions, reimbursed positions for the meeting time, we’re having a real difficult time getting these positions filled,” he said.

Van Rossum requested village staff to look into the possible downsizing of commissions and committees.

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