The Lawrence Township Council is reviewing proposals from three firms for a study of the township’s fire and emergency services.
The three firms are among seven consulting firms that responded to a request for proposals (RFP) in January.
A special subcommittee of the Lawrence Township Public Safety Coordinating Committee examined the seven responses to the RFP and recommended three consultants to the Township Council. Copies of the proposals have been given to the governing body for review.
The RFP asked the respondents to study the feasibility of centralizing and/or consolidating fire and EMS (emergency medical services) units into one building and if so, where should a new fire and EMS headquarters be located.
The RFP also asked the consultants to review staffing levels and conduct an analysis of future staffing needs. An evaluation of response time, based on existing staff and equipment, is part of the study. The response time is the length of time that it takes for a fire truck or ambulance to respond to a call for help.
The top three firms recommended by the subcommittee are the Center for Government Research (CGR); the Center for Public Safety Management (CPSM); and H2M, which is an architectural and engineering firm.
CGR has conducted fire district studies and created a master plan for an all-volunteer fire department, according to its website. It is focused on public safety issues.
CPSM has provided fire and EMS technical assistance, and also conducted fire station location analyses.
H2M is a professional consulting and design firm. It is an engineering and architecture firm that also has designed fire stations.
The seven RPF submissions varied widely with respect to the presentations, details and quality, as well as costs, subcommittee member Ray Nagy said.
The subcommittee reviewed the submissions based on criteria that included the depth and breadth of knowledge and expertise of each firm, as well as local projects they have done, Nagy said.
Additional criteria included project understanding and the qualifications of the project team. The project timeline and the overall project budget and costs to be incurred were also considered.
CGR is the preferred firm, Nagy said. It is a nonprofit consulting firm. It offers 10 team members from various disciplines to be assigned to the Lawrence Township project.
“The firm has similar and comprehensive local project experience,” he said. “We thought that was pretty important.”
CGR presented a very analytical and detailed approach to developing and identifying recommendations, as well as areas of improvement. CGR also projected a very specific timeline, complete with detailed milestones, Nagy said.
The next step is for the Township Council to discuss and agree on which firm will be awarded the bid.
This is not the first time that the township has studied the issue of fire and emergency services. Studies were commissioned by the township in 2017 and 2023. The proposed study, which would be the third one, was triggered by a suggestion in the 2023 study to locate a new fire and EMS station on the corner of Route 206 and West Long Drive.
Some residents in the Long Acres neighborhood objected to the suggestion to locate a fire and EMS station on township-owned land on the corner of Route 206 and West Long Drive, which is the entrance to their neighborhood. They cited potential negative impact on their property values and quality of life.
