Fire Department Won’t Renew Cherry Capital Airport Contract

May 17—TRAVERSE CITY — A current agreement for Traverse City Fire Department to provide aircraft rescue and firefighting services for Cherry Capital Airport will be the last.

Interim City Manager Nate Geinzer and city Fire Chief Jim Tuller announced the contract won't be renewed as the city refocuses on its own firefighting and emergency medical service needs.

"The airport has been experiencing continued growth and has been seeking additional services from public and private sources," Geinzer said in a statement. "At this time, the city needs to refocus efforts to maintain a high level of services to our residents, businesses, and visitors. As long-standing partners, we intend to continue our strong relationship by working together to support the transition."

The agreement currently provides onsite firefighters from the Traverse City Fire Department to fulfill the airport's Federal Aviation Administration required standby aircraft rescue firefighting services.

Cherry Capital Airport Director Kevin Klein said he was saddened by the decision, but grateful for the services the city fire department provided.

"So, yes, it's a sad day, but we just want to thank the city for their professional firefighters, their great attitudes, it's been almost 20 years since we've been working with them and it's just been an outstanding relationship," he said.

Next, the Northwest Regional Airport Authority that oversees the airport will likely ask for private contractors and other fire departments for bids to provide the services, Klein said. City and airport officials last renewed the agreement with Traverse City Fire in 2020, and it's set to expire June 30.

Klein agreed the city and airport authority will work together to ensure travel at the airport won't be disrupted, including city firefighters potentially staying on a bit longer until a new provider is in place.

With the dissolution of the agreement, the airport will be required to meet these FAA regulations independently, Tuller said in a release. This situation is not atypical for Cherry Capital.

When the agreement ends, there will no longer be a firefighter from TCFD at the airport 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Reached Tuesday, Tuller said the decision not to renew the agreement came after airport officials requested a second firefighter at the airport. Meanwhile, the department is looking to fill six openings. He expected to hire one person before the end of May and another in June, plus interview a third soon.

But it takes months to train new hires, and another firefighter's upcoming retirement could add to the vacancies the department would still have to fill, Tuller said. After doing some research, Tuller and other city administrators decided it was time to end the fire department's contract with the airport.

"So what this will allow us to do at the end of the agreement will be to immediately fill those vacancies with those personnel that were assigned to the airport," he said.

Airport officials had hoped to hire a second firefighter through a private contractor, then bring in a city firefighter once the department had hired enough, Klein said. Two firefighters would allow the airport to meet a higher level of FAA requirements as plane sizes increase. But department and city leadership decided it was a challenge just fulfilling the base agreement with the airport.

Klein said the decision was understandable, considering the department's efforts to staff its own stations plus keep a firefighter at the airport around the clock.

This announcement comes less than one week after the airport hosted an annual training for members of TCFD to meet its FAA compliance.

Even without someone on site 24/7, city firefighter paramedics will still respond to emergencies at Cherry Capital Airport, Tuller said. That's been the case since the airport's founding shortly after World War II. And he said he is discussing maintaining some level of aircraft rescue and firefighter training, since the department more than likely will help respond to those kinds of incidents.

Klein said he looked forward to getting bids for aircraft rescue and firefighting services, and to a continued relationship with the city fire department through mutual aid agreements.

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