The City of Crookston has received notice that they have improved to a 02/2Y for the City’s Public Protection Classification (PPC) for Fire Protection. This classification puts the City of Crookston in the top 5 percent nationally among the 46,000 communities evaluated in the United States.
Crookston Fire Chief Tim Froeber explained the rating system from the Insurance Service Office (ISO) at the City Council meeting Monday night. “What they are is an independent company that conducts PPC on fire departments nationwide using a standard evaluation process,” said Froeber. “This process is used in big and small departments. Last year they did 46,000 fire departments, and they rate the fire departments from Class 1 to Class 10. The lower the number shows how well the department is doing.”
Crookston was one of 13 cities in Minnesota to receive a Class 2. “In Minnesota, there were only 13 fire departments that received a Class 2 score,” said Froeber. “That is the top 1.5 percent in Minnesota. So we got very good news on the classification and the services that our fire department provides.”
The score is weighted between the Crookston Fire Department 50 percent, Crookston Water Department 40 percent, and Polk County Dispatch 10 percent. The scoring is based off all the work the fire department does in training, inspections, and calls along with equipment and other records according to Froeber. “Things that they look at the fire department are equipment, training records, testing records for hose, fire pumps and hydrants,” said Froeber. “He looks at inspection records for commercial and rental properties, response times, personnel, mutual aid agreements, run reports, maintenance records, and standard operating guidelines. He looks at the fire department very thoroughly. And he also looks over the dispatch center and water supply system thoroughly.”
PPC is used as the national standard by most U.S insurers for an essential role in the underwriting process as part of their decision making on pricing for personal or commercial property. Homeowners and business owners should check with their insurance providers to see if this new, improved classification may help reduce rates.
While the rating is for Fire Protection, Froeber says there are lots of crucial people and entities that play a role. “This is not only a fire department effort,” said Froeber. “Thanks goes out to the City Water Department, Polk County Dispatch, the Crookston Firefighters Association, and the Crookston Fire Department. We’d also like to thank our past and present city leaders for their trust and faith in our fire department. And for the funds and equipment to train our firefighters.”
The City Council didn’t have any topics on their regular agenda and just four items on the consent agenda, which passed unanimously. The consent agenda included the approval of the June 24 meeting minutes. The approval of the bills and disbursements totaling $323,048.50. A resolution designating the City of Crookston Website as the alternate publication source for city notices for six months. And the approval of partial payment to R & Q Trucking Inc for the work done to date totaling $562,952.98 for 2019 street improvements.
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