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After eight months without a contract, Vista firefighters have agreed to forgo a pay increase in exchange for the city preserving a so-called "constant staffing" system that requires city ambulances and fire engines to be ready to roll at all times.

Vista had proposed eliminating the system, which creates overtime opportunities for firefighters because it means the Fire Department has to find fill-ins for workers who call in sick or take vacation days.

Eliminating "constant staffing" would have freed up dollars to pay for raises and given fire Chief Gary Fisher the authority to set firefighters' schedules and determine how many units are running each day, Assistant City Manager Patrick Johnson said.

However, the Vista Firefighters Association balked at that plan. The agreement the Vista City Council approved Tuesday differs little from the union's previous five-year contract that expired June 30.

In the current fiscal year, Vista is set to spend about $17.4 million on fire services. City officials plan to hold that number steady in the next fiscal year.

Vista firefighters are the third-lowest paid firefighters of 18 San Diego County departments, Johnson said. Their base salary is slightly below the region's median, but because Vista employees pay 8 percent of their annual salary toward their pension plans, the firefighters' pay drops near the bottom of the county's ranks, he added.

Still, the head of the city's firefighters union said this week he is satisfied with the deal.

"The best thing for the city was for us to remain at our low wage and benefit level and keep units on the street," said Chris Hammond, president of the association. "We understand that lots of people out there are losing jobs and living on reduced incomes, so for us to stay at the rate we are at is definitely acceptable to us until we get through this economic crisis."

The new contract makes no changes to firefighters' wages, benefits or working conditions but does includes a small modification to firefighters' insurance that puts them on the same plan as all other city employees. The plan requires unions to split annual health care premiums with the city.

When council members approved the deal Tuesday, they acknowledged firefighters' hard work.

"Firefighters are not getting a pay increase or a benefit increase because of the times we're in right now," Councilman Steve Gronke said. "Although I understand they're near the bottom of the pay scale, they still step up every day and do their job."

City officials said they hope they'll be able to provide raises for the department when budget revenues increase.

"It's a shame we can't do any more for our officers (firefighters) here in Vista," Councilman Frank Lopez said. "Maybe in a year or two, when the economy turns around, we can."

Contact staff writer Cigi Ross at 760-901-4067.

Vista's Fire Department is responding faster to emergencies since two new fire stations opened last year, fulfilling a promise to voters who paid for the stations through the city's half-cent sales tax increase, a new city report says.

Fire Chief Gary Fisher said firefighters' response times have dropped by an average of 30 seconds since stations were opened on South Melrose Drive and East Vista Way in April 2009. Although 30 seconds may not seem like much, it can mean life and death in an emergency.

"One of the things we said we needed to do was improve response time, and they (residents) agreed with us," Fisher said. "That's exactly what we've done."

The department's response times have been criticized by some residents in the past, particularly those who live in the Vista Fire Protection District, an unincorporated area north and east of the city limits that is served by the Vista Fire Department.

Fire Protection District President Read Miller said Friday he's cautiously optimistic about the improvements.

"We're pleased with the progress that's being made," he said. "Hopefully, when the entire system is in place, there will be a significant improvement. It's too early to judge the results at this stage."

The Fire Department's Standards of Response Coverage report was presented to the City Council last month. The report examines the amount of time it takes firefighters to field calls, get into their gear and arrive at a scene.

Fisher said average response times in the city have dropped from under 5.5 minutes in 2006 to under 5 minutes in 2009. In the Vista Fire Protection District, the trend has gone from under 6.5 minutes in 2006 to just over 5.5 in 2009.

In addition, in 2007 about 30 percent of the department's responses took longer than 6.5 minutes. In 2009, roughly 10 percent of the department's calls took longer than 6.5 minutes, the report said.

Fisher said the national guideline for response times states that fire crews should arrive at the scene of a fire or medical emergency within 6 minutes.

The fire chief said he expects to see another significant drop in response times when Station No. 1 on North Melrose Drive reopens at the end of April.

Miller, the fire district president, agreed that that station's reopening and the possible relocation of Fire Station No. 3 on Old Taylor Street to a site farther north could help improve district response times.

Fisher acknowledged that lagging response times were a problem in Vista a few years ago.

"We were starting to hear concerns about how long it took us to get to calls," he said. "A lot of our units (would be) already on calls when another call would come in, and that would extend the response."

Vista's Fire Department provides fire and paramedic service to a 36-square mile area, including the 95,000 residents living in the city and 17,000 living in Fire Protection District.

Fisher said that 75 to 80 percent of the calls fielded by Vista firefighters are medical, and 62 percent of all calls come in simultaneously. Opening new stations has helped make sure Fire Department resources and personnel are well distributed, he said.

"The placement of the stations gives us really good redundancy," he said. "If folks are having major medical issues, they have a better chance of recovery. Any fires we get to we're keeping small, so (the) loss is small."

Mayor Morris Vance said during a City Council meeting last month that the city has taken response times very seriously and that the improvements mean the City Council has kept a promise it made to voters in 2006.

"We had to reduce response times because after six or seven minutes, a person's going to be dead if you don't get there," Vance said. "It's something that was really vital for public safety."

Vance spearheaded the campaign to pass Proposition L, the half-cent sales tax increase that Vista voters approved in November 2006 to pay for a laundry list of capital improvements including the two new fire stations, the remodeling of Fire Station No. 1 and the construction of a $55.3 million Civic Center.

"What we promised has taken place," Vance said. "I couldn't be more pleased with the results of Prop. L. The projects were needed within the community. They got built under budget and within schedule."

Other council members agreed the decreased times prove the need for the new stations.

"We are in a better place when it comes to public safety," Councilman Steve Gronke said.

The fire stations were constructed for $12.3 million total, and the renovation of the department's headquarters on North Melrose Drive was approved for $3.7 million.

Contact staff writer Cigi Ross at 760-901-4067.