Hagerstown starts search for new fire chief

With Hagerstown Fire Chief Steve Lohr planning to retire in early January, the City of Hagerstown has begun a regional search for the city's next fire chief.

"Someone will have tough shoes to fill," City Administrator Scott Nicewarner said Wednesday in a phone interview.

Lohr became the city's fire chief on June 29, 2015. The Washington County native took the job after retiring as chief of the Montgomery County Fire Rescue Services at the end of 2014.

"I'm thrilled with finishing my career here," said Lohr, who turns 69 around the time he retires.

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"I've always lived here even when I worked in Montgomery County," Lohr said of the county. He's lived in Hagerstown and Funkstown.

He has been in the fire service since 1971, including volunteering with the Funkstown and Antietam fire companies as well as with Community Rescue Service.

"That's a long time to be doing anything," Lohr said of his career.

The job for a new fire chief was posted earlier this week, including a listing on Indeed and through Firehouse Magazine.

If the city ends up hiring someone new to the fire department, the hiring schedule aims to allow crossover time for the transition of duties before Lohr retires, Nicewarner said. If an internal candidate is hired, that could condense the timeframe.

"I think Hagerstown is a great opportunity for someone to step in as fire chief and build on what Steve has done and look to further what is already an outstanding fire department," Nicewarner said.

The city is looking for someone with "seven years of increasingly responsible experience in all major functions of a municipal fire department, with at least four years in a command position," the ad states.

The city is advertising a salary range of $77,147 to $124,113, according to the ads.

The current fire chief salary is $124,113.60, according to an email from Human Resources Director Don Francis.

The deadline to apply is Oct. 6, Nicewarner said.

Similarly to when Lohr was hired, the city will involve stakeholders in the selection process, including representation from the firefighters union, city firehouse volunteers and the Hagerstown Police Department, Nicewarner said. Referring to those folks as participating in an "assessment center," Nicewarner said applicants will be selected from the initial application process to go through the assessment center in October.

That group will determine who moves forward for another interview round in November with Nicewarner and possibly other staff.

Nicewarner said he expects to take his recommendation for the post to the mayor and City Council on Dec. 5.

"We just want to make sure that we do this the right way, that we give every stakeholder involved with the fire department a chance to participate in the selection process and then ultimately have someone onboard that can be as much as a service as Chief Lohr has been," Nicewarner said.

"We were extremely lucky and fortunate to get (Lohr) when we did," Nicewarner said.

"His career has been exemplary in Montgomery County and we're just extremely fortunate that the timing worked out that he was available back in 2015 to take on services as fire chief," he said.

"The chief has taught me a lot about the ins and outs of fire service, the management of it. He's going to be sorely missed," Nicewarner said.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: Hagerstown, Md., searching for next fire chief; Lohr retiring soon