The Toledo Fire & Rescue Department wants to enlist the help of a local minority-owned creative firm to increase diversity in its ranks, but some city councilmen aren’t sure they want to award the contract without first going to bid.
Fire officials on Tuesday proposed contracting with Vince Rocha Productions LLC’s vCreative to produce a recruitment campaign for the department. It would cost $25,400 for 2019 and $34,200 for 2020, for a two-year total of $59,600.
It’s the same firm that worked with the Toledo Police Department on its recent recruitment campaign — which Fire Chief Brian Byrd said was a success — but fire officials are proposing a more extensive contract.
“We consulted with TPD, their recruiting team, and also I talked to Chief [George] Kral regarding utilizing that company, and they sing their praises,” Chief Byrd told councilmen during their agenda review meeting. “The diversity they had with their last class, they attribute part of that success to that company.”