Packet: Tiffin City Council Work Session (09/01/2026)

City of Tiffin Fire Department | Progress Report | Tom Hartshorn Department Culture In my first few months here, I was asking questions, learning, making notes, and assessing the overall department. This has led me to the following assessment; the Tiffin Fire Department has a leadership group who all care. The department is extremely young in experience, and we largely lack the ability to effectively train our members to the level that should be expected. The Tiffin Fire Department is also well funded. We have a brand-new engine, top of the line SCBAs, great hoses, nozzles, and a great aerial, etc. I commend you, the Council, on supporting the fire department to the level that you have. It appears to me that there are very few things that the department has asked for that we haven’t gotten. That being said, the department leadership has allowed there to be an imbalance of power and authority, and has focused largely on equipment, things, and technology. This has created a lack of trust, a lack of ownership, very little empowerment, and low morale throughout the department. I often sum up my assessment as this, “the department has focused on processes over people.” These systems, while sometime well intentioned, have created obstacles for the department. There is no equipment that I can purchase that will increase the morale and response reliability of the fire department, including a new station. We need to ensure that all team members have an opportunity to contribute, feel valued, and are encouraged to participate in a respectful and supportive manner. The department needs to know and trust that the Chief is in charge and that organizational level decisions will be handled by the Chief and/or the Chief Officers. Looking Forward The first phase of this transition primarily involved stabilizing, evaluating, organizing, and establishing roles and expectations. The next phase should increasingly focus on implementation and long-term planning. My priorities moving forward include: • Continued implementation of the revised organizational structure and officer responsibilities. • Invest in the culture, rebuild trust, empower and encourage members growth. • Completing and adopting priority department policies and guidelines. • Continued implementation of the EMS only program. • A revised deployment model that clearly defines what apparatus to take to what calls and ensures that we are best deploying our resources. • Strengthening our training program, look to fund a part time training officer. • Evaluate our apparatus and determine a long term replacement plan. • Evaluate staffing plan for the future. • Planning of a new fire station. • Position the department to transition to a full-time Fire Chief.