Introduction
The Long Lake Fire Department (LLFD) was founded in 1915, and the City of Long Lake has a lot of pride in its Fire Department and firefighters who have served our community for many, many years. The LLFD serves the cities of Long Lake, Orono, Minnetonka Beach, and southern Medina. In April 2021 the City of Orono officially notified the City of Long Lake that it is terminating the contract for fire protection services that has been in effect since 2002. This termination will take effect on December 31, 2025. Since that time, several letters have been exchanged between the two cities and they are listed below (along with other pertinent presentations and videos) in chronological order from the most recent to the oldest.
In the summer and early fall of 2022, two City Council representatives from each City (in our case, Mayor Miner and Council member Dyvik) began meeting on a regular basis to discuss the future of fire service in our communities, as well as in the other cities served by the Long Lake Fire Department. Various options were being considered; however, in late September Orono stopped participating in the negotiations and instead sent a letter to Long Lake offering the "transition" of the LLFD to the City of Orono. Long Lake responded to that letter on October 12 and again on January 27. Copies of all letters between the two cities regarding the Fire Department situation are available on our website. We'll keep Long Lake residents informed of potential outcomes as we move forward. In addition to communications with Orono, City staff and Council members have also been participating in a working group comprised of several area cities and fire departments that was initially led by the Minnesota State Fire Marshals Office. The group is discussing ways to potentially consolidate fire departments and/or share equipment. This is due, in part, to a national trend of fire departments consolidating due to ever-increasing staffing shortages and rising equipment and facilities costs.
Stay tuned for more information on this very important topic to our communities.