Freeport named a 25-year department veteran as the town’s new fire and rescue chief on Tuesday.
Paul Conley is replacing former Chief Charles Jordan, who retired in September after five years in that position. The Town Council unanimously appointed Conley at Tuesday’s meeting.
“There’s things that work really well at the fire-rescue department now, there’s things that need improvement,” said Freeport Town Manager Peter Joseph at the meeting. “We seem to have a lot of the same ideas about where improvements can come.”
Over his career with the department, Conley said, EMS calls have increased steadily, from an estimated 300 per year to 1,097 so far in 2021. Fire calls have also increased, he said, but not to the same degree.
Conley said the two major
Conley said he would like to begin looking for new ways to address mental health calls, such as promoting available local services.
He also said he plans to improve training techniques in collaboration with the police department to better address those crises.
“A lot of the times the PD is involved before us, or with us, or just after us,” said Conley.
Freeport named a new police chief, Nathaniel Goodman, in September, who has also expressed the need for more accessible mental health services in Freeport and statewide.
In September, Freeport officials approved spending $648,000 for a new fire truck.Once the new truck arrives, Freeport will have two engines, one ladder truck, three rescue trucks, a pumper-tanker truck, a brush truck and a service pickup.
“Equipment-wise, the biggest hurdle we have is personnel, and this is a job that isn’t attracting a lot of people anymore,” said Conley.
There are around 45 people on staff – four full-time, a dozen on-call members and the remainder per-diem members. Conley said the department has recently developed growth targets, and recruitment and retention will be one of his largest tasks. He plans to negotiate pay during the budget season, look to boost benefits for employees and improve overall training.
The department is also looking to hire two more full-time staffers and to take on about six qualified per-diem members. The deputy chief position, which Conley previously held, is also now open.
Attempts to contact Joseph for further comment were unsuccessful Wednesday.
According to Judy Hawley, Freeport’s assistant town manager, Conley was se-lected from a pool of 11 applicants.
His annual salary will be $87,618.
A Freeport resident, Conley has his master’s in fire service leadership and is a graduate of the National Fire Academy Executive Fire Officer program. He has been working in fire and EMS work since about 1979.
“The experience that I had in those courses, the interactions I had with other peers from across the country, I just felt it has given me the toolset to lead a department, and now I have that opportunity,” said Conley.
“So, I’m excited.”
C. Thacher Carter — 689-2997 ctcarter@timesrecord.com Twitter: @cthachercarter