Dec. 03--Albuquerque Fire Chief James Breen will end his 23-year career as a firefighter, including four as chief, at the end of the year, department officials confirmed Monday.
In a letter to fellow firefighters announcing his Dec. 31 retirement, Breen said the department "has become one of the most progressive and innovative fire departments in the United States."
In the letter, Breen claimed a number of accomplishments, including: " dramatically improved" operational effectiveness; enhanced firefighter safety; and measures that made the department more fiscally sustainable. Breen, named to the fire department's top job by then mayor-elect Richard Berry in November 2009, said he hopes the Berry administration will select his replacement from within the department.
Breen's four-year stint as chief was not without controversy.
In February 2012, he suspended Diego Arencon, president of the union that represents local firefighters, for 30 days without pay after a city investigation accused him of falsifying time sheets, raising money while on the clock for then-Mayor Martin Chavez in 2009 and improperly using his city email account.
Fred Mowrer, Arencon's attorney, said at the time that his client was being punished for things that took place more than two years prior and that were never a problem until Berry and his team moved into City Hall in December 2009.
Also in 2012, Arencon and Berry released competing reports regarding the city's fire department.
A study by the International Association of Firefighters said firefighters were unable to respond to calls within nationally recommended time frames in certain parts of Albuquerque and Bernalillo County. The study cited limited manpower, too few firetrucks and a lack of real-time communication between the Albuquerque and Bernalillo County fire departments.
Berry's office then released a consultant's report saying the fire department was "overresponding" to fires and questioned whether the department needs two paramedics on each rescue unit.
Breen had been with the department in various roles since 1990.
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