Written by John Boyle, Asheville Watchdog.
Today’s round of questions, smart-aleck replies, and the real answers:
Question: What’s the deal with the gray Buncombe County EMS unit with the orange stripe and mountains on the side? Is this the new paint scheme they are going with, getting away from the orange and white? Are these new units, or are they repainting the older units?
My answer: This is how it starts. First the ambulances go gray, then the fire trucks turn electric blue and the next thing you know the cop cars are fuschia and emerald green and it’s total chaos in the world of public safety.
Real answer: Gray is indeed the new, well, orange and white in this case.
“We do have some new ambulances with a new design out on the road now,” Buncombe County spokesperson Lillian Govus said via email. “Emergency Services has received two units that represent a new look for Buncombe EMS.”
Govus said the county is starting to take delivery of the new units and expects to have 15 new units in service later this year.
“These new units will replace our existing frontline units,” Govus said. “This will represent two years of orders and backlogs of ambulances.”
Ambulances do not come cheap.
“In fiscal year 2025, we are budgeting $1.4 million for four ambulances and $300,000 on chassis for three remounts,” Govus said. “All in, the average ambulance costs about $380,000, compared to about $240,000 pre-pandemic.”
Interesting side note — “chassis” is the plural for “chassis.” Apparently, it’s in pronunciation — “chas-ee” for singular, “chas-eez” for plural, according to Merriam-Webster and other online sources. Yeah, I had to look it up.
The county is using the new ambulances to eventually replace its fleet of ambulances bought in 2017. They have more than 200,000 miles on the odometer reading for actual miles and over twice that amount with idle time factored in, Govus said.
“As we align to Buncombe’s strategic plan and our goal to decrease carbon emissions, six ambulances (as part of a pilot project) will also have idle-mitigation systems to reduce those idle times, allowing for less engine wear and decreased fuel consumption,” Govus said. “The ambulance industry overall is currently experiencing a truck-chassis shortage, and so we procured several demo vehicles with this technology that will also allow us to stay ahead of the shortage.”
Question: You may have already addressed this, but the City of Asheville has a new fire inspection fee that is excessive, to say the least. It’s outsourced to Fire Recovery USA, with payment to an Atlanta P.O. box, in the amount of $100, plus a $5 “technology fee.” Here’s what the inspection involved: A person walked in our office, checked the expiration tag on our fire extinguisher, and walked out. Total inspection: two minutes. In our seven-office business center Fire Recovery billed a minimum $735 for about 15 minutes work. How can the city, which already imposes a business license tax and vehicle tax and property tax, justify that rate for a two-minute “inspection?”
My answer: Welp, now you’ve just ensured that you’ll be getting a “complainer’s tax.” Congratulations.
Real answer: I did address these inspections previously, but that spawned this followup that’s worth a look.
Asheville Fire Department spokesperson Kelley Klope said she met with Fire Marshal Kelly Hinz, who provided answers.
First, Hinz noted that the point of a fire inspection is to make sure everyone who uses a building, as well as emergency responders, can get out of the building safely in the event of a fire. Asheville Fire Department employees who are certified by the state as fire prevention inspectors complete the fire inspections.
“The billing, including invoicing and collection of payments, is done through a third-party company called Fire Recovery USA,” Hinz said via email. “ Some of the benefits of using this company for our customers include a multitude of payment options and invoice turnaround times. Also, the cost of using this service is not passed onto the customer.”
Asheville has charged fire inspection fees since North Carolina mandated the inspection program in 1992. The inspection fee for a business is based on square footage — the larger the business, the larger the fee.
Hinz said the $100 inspection fee applies to businesses occupying spaces ranging from 1,000 to 2,999 square feet. An occupied business this size gets inspected once every three years.
“The 5 percent technology fee is the most recent change,” Hinz said. “It was added about three years ago as the Fire Marshal’s Office began using new technologies to help meet state-mandated inspection requirements, such as iPads.”
The technology allows inspectors to take pictures of violations and to deliver digital copies of the inspection report by email, Hinz said. Fire extinguishers and fire protection systems have to be tested annually.
“Reviewing the tag is how the inspectors know the extinguisher has been tested by a certified company,” Hinz said, adding that inspectors also check other safety issues.
Got a question? Send it to John Boyle at [email protected] or 828-337-0941.
Asheville Watchdog is a nonprofit news team producing stories that matter to Asheville and Buncombe County. Got a question? Send it to John Boyle at [email protected] or 828-337-0941. To show your support for this vital public service go to avlwatchdog.org/donate.