Monticello fire score equals insurance savings

by David Boyle
News Director
Monticello City Council members heard reports on a citizen’s academy, the return of utility deposits and a new score for the fire department that will mean lower home insurance rates for residents at their latest meeting.
Members of the Monticello City Council received great news regarding home insurance in the city from Monticello Fire Chief Jonathan Nielson at the July 9 meeting.
Nielson shared that every five years the city completes a review to give the city an Insurance Services Office (ISO) score.
Nielson reported Monticello’s class rating had improved from class 6 to class 5 from the latest reporting.
The ISO score is used by insurance providers to rate how well a fire department can protect its service area and local homes. Those scores are used to help determine insurance rates since homes that are less likely to be lost in a fire are cheaper to insure, as a result Monticello residents may see a decrease in their home insurance rate.
Nieson added, “This is pretty good for Monticello. We encourage Monticello residents to call their home insurance company to see if they qualify for a discount.”
Getting the lower ISO score was the result of a lot of work for Nielson and the volunteer fire department. The review included an in-depth look at each fire truck including inspecting each hose down to each flashlight on the truck. Additionally documentation of the last three-years of training logs, the number of volunteers responding to each incident, the gallons per minute out of the city fire hydrants were all part of the review. 
When asked for context on the city’s score Nielson recalled that he believed Blanding was also rated at a 5, and said Moab –which has a mix of full-time and part-time firefighters–is rated at a 4.
Only a few items were identified for possible improvement for the city; one would be testing the firetrucks annually.
Nielson explained the cost of mobilization to get those that test equipment from the Salt Lake area to Monticello can be prohibitive. However, Nielson added the city plans to coordinate with other local communities to more efficiently bring firetruck testers down to the area.
When asked, Nielson also agreed that increasing water storage for the city would also be helpful.
Nielson and the volunteer fire department received thanks and praise from members of the council as well as city management.
City Manager Kaeden Kulow noted that while the department had 36 calls last year the department is already at 29 calls halfway through 2024.
A lot of the responses for the department is related to vehicle accidents which Nielson said takes a toll on the department. 
Staff also shared that the volunteer departments are regularly given cards with a phone number to address trauma with mental health professionals. The private calls are covered under a program through San Juan County.
Members of the Monticello city council also heard a presentation from Utah Highway Patrolman Brian Robinson who presented a plan for a citizens academy for local elected leadership.
The academy will be a four-week course, with council members and local law enforcement officers meeting once a week for two hours to review different scenarios that law enforcement encounters.
While this would be the first time a citizens academy would be offered in San Juan County, Robinson shared the feedback he received from a previous academy he helped run in Juab County was mostly positive.
“For the most part everyone was on board with it, sharing how eye-opening it was”.
Running in late August and September Robinson explained this first rendition of the academy will have invites for members of the Monticello and Blanding city councils as well as the San Juan County Commission and prosecuting attorneys.
Training will review different scenarios law enforcement officers encounter with one training by the Utah Highway Patrol, one by the Blanding City Police Department, and one by the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office.
From there the Citizens Academy may eventually expand to have more offerings but Robinson says that depends on buy-in from local leadership.
Council member Kevin Dunn offered support for the idea. “ I think that’s wonderful to get people to understand how difficult your job is.”
Members of the Monticello city council offered their support as well with the first class scheduled for late August.
City council also received a report on the return of hundreds of utility account deposits. 
Kulow brought the item before the council at their June 25 meeting. Noting that while typically the city refunds the deposit after one year in good standing, those haven’t been processed over the last five years resulting in a good amount of money due back to Monticello citizens, about $56,000.
Refunding that money all at once would require the city to pull from savings accounts to balance the books, so staff recommended starting with refunding the $10,500 owed on accounts five years or older.
After that, plans are to work their way forward to refund accounts in good standing.
Kulow explained the discovery was made under a new software system for the city.
At the latest meeting council received a report that a notice had been sent out to those accounts in good standing owed a portion of the $10,500.
A letter to residents outlined options for citizens including donating their utility deposit to a city program they’d like to support, receiving the deposit back as a check or having it applied to the balance of their utility account. Residents will have a little over a month to reply to city offices before the amount will be automatically refunded.
At the latest meeting members of the city council also approved a resolution adopting the final tax rates and budgets for the city.
Kulow outlined the yearly rate is a standard rate that can change year to year to keep the city revenue neutral.
Members of the council unanimously approved the rate.
Council member Nathan Chamberlain shared that after being on the council for nearly a decade he’s always seen the rate stay revenue-neutral.
“I think at some point we need to look at not necessarily accepting this rate but looking at it and getting a little bit more money in our coffers to start doing more projects in the city that would benefit more people.”
Mayor Bayley Hedglin responded,
“I agree, I wouldn’t probably look at doing it on the property tax but the sales tax to where it spreads some of that to our visitors.”
City staff agreed to bring more information about the current sales tax rate for a future discussion.
Council member George Rice also shared that he had addressed some of the issues at the Mill Site where some broken sprinklers had resulted in unhealthy trees that had been planted in remembrance of victims of mill tailings exposure. VMTE offered some of their funds to help repair the issues and Rice reported he was able to replace the backflow preventer and frost free hydrant. Additional work may be needed but the city is waiting to follow-up on a possible volunteer to look at the issue. 
City council and staff also discussed how to prevent further issues with the system at the Mill Site and made plans to give staff assignments to make sure the system is winterized and taken care of.
At the meeting Kulow also followed up on a conversation about use of the city pickleball courts located outside the city pool. Kulow reported after conversation with risk management the city should be able to open the outdoor gates at times for citizen use so long as the outdoor pool entrances are securely closed.
City council also received a report on the new city disc golf course at their latest meeting, see the story on page B1.