Public safety director resigns

MAT-SU -- A year and a half before reaching the eligible age for retirement, Mat-Su Borough's Department of Public Safety Director resigned from a 19 1/2-year career with the borough last week.

Kevin Koechlein, in a Tuesday interview, said his decision is not related to Borough Manager John Duffy's budget proposal, which includes some significant changes to Koechlein's department, as well as additional funding for more coverage by emergency medical technicians.

"We have a difference of opinion as to how some things should have been done," Koechlein said.

Duffy said because Koechlein's resignation was a personnel matter, he could not discuss it in detail. He did, however, recognize the significant achievements Koechlein helped bring about.

"Kevin … has made a lot of fine contributions over the years," Duffy said. "[His resignation] had nothing to do with the reorganization."

Although the search for a new department director has not officially begun and ads have not yet been placed, Duffy said he plans to use a group approach to filling the position. A board, he said, comprised of fire chiefs, emergency medical services chiefs, and possible representatives from the borough's various boards of supervisors will likely be pulled together to come up with a list of candidates who may be a good fit.

In the meantime, Michael Keenan, the deputy fire chief for Wasilla Lakes fire department is serving as the acting director until Jack Krill, the Central fire department chief, returns from vacation. Krill is due back Monday.

Koechlein said he has worked in the public safety industry for around 30 years, when he worked in Colorado. He moved to work on Alaska's oil fields, then went to work instead for Anchorage's public safety department. A few years later, he moved to the Valley and began working for the borough's public safety office, then managed under the borough's finance department. When public safety became its own department seven years ago, Koechlein was given the director's chair.

"It's been kind of fun," Koechlein said. "I got into this business when it was really in its infancy."

Koechlein discussed the significant changes he saw over the course of his career with the borough.

"When I first came to work for the borough, we had maybe 720 to 730 ambulance runs," Koechlein said. "We started out with three advanced-level EMTs."

This year, he said, there were between 4,600 and 4,700 runs. Nationally, he said, ambulance runs average 10 percent of the overall population. Today, the borough has between 60 and 70 EMTs.

And what's more, the volunteers presently serving with the borough are required to go through more training.

"The level of expertise is just light years beyond what we had in the 1980s," Koechlein said.

The enhanced or E-911 system has recently come online under Koechlein's supervision, allowing emergency responders faster access to emergency situations, and the level of fire protection has doubled over the years. And as of recently, Koechlein has taken part in the Local Emergency Planning Commission, to help ready the borough for potential hazards or disasters.

"We're as close to being ready for a major disaster as a community our size can be," Koechlein said.

Koechlein said, because of the headway made, he supports the changes made to the department of public safety in the manager-proposed 2003 budget.

"I really hope the assembly will pass this budget," Koechlein said. "It's long overdue … My folks -- and I still think of them as my folks, deserve to be [compensated]. They do increased services for us, and it's worth it."

Koechlein said he plans to take a little time off, and presently doesn't have any solid plans for the future.

"I'm not ready to just kick back and do nothing," Koechlein said. "I'd like to try something really different from what I do now."