Kinnelon Fire Chief Has 'Dream' to Help Taxpayers

new Fire Chief Kieth Pavlak is not only out to stop fires in the borough. He is also hoping to help borough taxpayers reduce their insurance costs this year.

Pavlak, a volunteer with the , took the reigns as chief for the fourth time in December. Despite actually living in , Pavlak said his commitment to Kinnelon runs through his blood as his two brothers and his father were also members of the Kinnelon fire company.

"Once it gets in your blood, you can't stop," he said. "It's like a second job."

Pavlak said his family moved to the tri-boro in 1959. "I was here before Kinnelon Road," he joked. He also volunteered as one of the original junior members of along with his brothers.

As the new chief, Pavlak is hoping to achieve a great deal in the next two years of his term. For starters, he and other volunteers are hoping to institute a mentoring program that will allow junior firefighters to learn from members who have been with the company for years. 

Also this year, the Kinnelon Volunteer Fire Co. will be on Boonton Avenue, and eventually, Pavlak said the department hopes to have the Kiel Avenue firehouse reconstructed as well. But perhaps the biggest goal Pavlak has for the company this year is to lower its Insurance Services Office (ISO) rating to help cut costs for homeowners, particularly those who live further than 1,000 feet away from a fire hydrant.

The ISO routinely inspects municipal fire departments and companies, assessing the fire protection capability of the local company and assigning them a rating on a scale of 1-10, 10 being the worst. The rating helps to determine homeowner's insurance for the taxpayers who live in the borough, Pavlak said. In 1994, Pavlak said the company was able to bring the rating for homes that are within 1,000 feet of a hydrant down from a 6 to a 4. However, for homes that are the further distance, the company was rated at a 9.

"My dream is to be a 4 across the board," Pavlak said.

Pavlak said that while many other departments shy away from the ISO, he is letting his company know that he will be calling the assessors and inviting them to the borough this summer. Pavlak is confident that the company will be able to lower the rating because he plans to work with the volunteers to train for the assessment, which involves timed exercises with tanker units. The ISO assessor will also be examining the fire company's record keeping and water supply.

Pavlak said the timed exercises are traditionally 15 minutes long, but he is challenging the Kinnelon volunteers to complete the exercise in only 14 minutes, and to complete it well.

"I want them to do it so that they're under 14 [minutes], but I want it to be perfect," he said.

If the company can achieve the lower rating, Pavlak said he thinks it is an opportunity to give back to the borough for the support it has shown the Kinnelon Volunteer Fire Co. Since the unit is a company and not a department, it is a private corporation, however the borough has supported the company by purchasing its trucks, including and building the new firehouse on Boonton Avenue.

"I want to go back to the town and say, 'You bought us trucks, you bought us a building. Here's what we did for you,'" he said.