By Joel Stottrup

Princeton Fire & Rescue Department was recently selected to receive a $103,138 Assistance to Firefighters Grant through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

FEMA has been making such grants since the Sept. 11, 2001, terroristic attacks to beef up fire and rescue departments through its Homeland Security Department.

The city will have to put in $5,428 as its match to the grant so the department will then have $108,566.
The department will be purchasing two-way radio equipment that has the 800 MHZ frequency, as that is the way emergency services departments are going in communication. The Sherburne County Sheriff’s Department is already using the 800 MHZ system and the Mille Lacs and Isanti Sheriff’s Departments are working toward that end.

Princeton Fire & Rescue has one 800 MHZ two-way radio in its first-responder/grass fire rig. The department does not yet have the licensing to use it, said Princeton Assistant Fire Chief Doug Larsen last week.

The department plans to buy two base station radios (one for the Princeton station and one for the satellite fire station in Wyanett Township), seven mobile radios, 25 portable radios and 34 pagers.

Larsen spent close to 40 hours applying for the grant through an on-line process last spring. Fellow department member Brad Hodgson obtained the cost of the radios through the government contracted supplier, Granite Electronics, St. Cloud. The approved brand is Motorola.

Larsen talked about the grant application process late last week at the Princeton fire station. He explained that the 26-page application is quite detailed. He had to detail the makeup of the department including its membership (34 members at application time and now 31), its equipment, its annual budget and a fire call history.

The department has 10 vehicles, an annual budget of nearly $206,000 and had 217 calls in 2008 and 197 last year. A big part was explaining the need for the grant.

There will also be a performance review in which the department has to detail the use of the money during the year period. The department, after purchasing the radios, can request to spend up to five percent of any remaining money on related equipment and fire prevention work.

The new radio equipment is digital, with improved performance and reliability over the old analog system, Larsen noted.

When a radio operator keys the mike on one of the new radios, the radio will locate the nearest tower and each tower has so many channel banks, Larsen noted.

“Obviously I feel very happy,” Larsen said about the news of the department getting the grant. “I put a lot of hours into it.” He added that the competition is high for getting one of the FEMA grants.

Princeton has submitted applications for these grants for eight years and now has received two, Larsen noted.

The department received a $184,133 grant in 2005 to buy turnout gear and air packs. The city had to match 10 percent of that grant.

The Zimmerman Fire and Rescue received the a FEMA grant at the same time Princeton received its most recent one, but Zimmerman’s is a much smaller grant, according to Larsen.

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