Staffing shortages slow Traverse City ambulance takeover progress toward summer 2026

The Traverse City Fire Department is close to providing primary ambulance transport but officials say national staffing shortages are slowing the final steps and could push back a planned summer 2026 launch. City leaders point to ongoing hiring and training as the principal barriers even as vehicles, funding and facilities move into place.

Fire Chief Jim Tuller told commissioners the effort is making progress but remains constrained by workforce limits. “(The transition is) slower than what we anticipated,” Tuller said, citing a national shortage of EMTs and paramedics. He added bluntly about staffing timelines: “If I had eight individuals knocking on the door tomorrow, yeah, maybe we could do it this summer, but more likely it’s going to get pushed off for a quarter, two quarters, things like that.” Tuller also noted the role of wages in recruitment: “people still of course need to be paid a working wage and be able to afford to be here and raise their families.”

The project has clear funding and equipment in place. Voters approved a 20-year, 1-mill millage in November 2023 to pay for personnel, equipment and facilities, and city program materials say the millage supports a proposed staffing model that includes nine additional personnel, one captain and two new ambulances. The department received its first ALS transport ambulance in January 2025 and put it into service in spring 2025; a second ambulance arrived in fall 2025 and city materials and officials say it could be ready for service by early summer.

Where the reporting diverges is how many hires remain. City recruiting materials list seven FF/EMT Basic and/or Paramedic positions open (one from FY 2024-25 and six from FY 2025-26). Media updates and Chief Tuller’s remarks also reference eight individuals still needed to meet the launch threshold. The department currently has 17 licensed firefighter-paramedics on staff and expects two additional personnel to graduate from paramedic training in March, which would narrow the gap.

Meanwhile, the city is preparing facilities and administration for the change. The city hired EMS Administrator Kathryn Dunklow in February 2025, has leased space at 520 W. Front Street and 851 Woodmere Avenue for Fire Administration relocation, and has repaired HVAC at 520 W. Front. City commissioners renewed the contract with Mobile Medical Response for transport while the department builds capacity; both TCFD and MMR respond to calls now, with MMR providing most transports unless the situation is urgent or MMR is unavailable.

The transition has already increased local transports: the department reported 206 patient transports to hospital in 2025, a 67 percent increase from 2024. City officials say a collective bargaining agreement approved by the commission in December has helped recruiting. “That’s when our phone started ringing, and that’s what it takes,” Tuller said.

For residents, the immediate impact is continuity of service under the current MMR contract and an expectation that TCFD will assume primary transport once staffing and training benchmarks are met. Key near-term milestones to watch are the March paramedic graduations, any new hires reported by the city, and final operational readiness of the second ambulance. If those pieces fall into place quickly, the takeover could still occur in 2026; if not, Chief Tuller warned the launch may slip by a quarter or two.