La Verne Expected To Name Chris Nigg As New Fire Chief

LA VERNE, CA — The search for La Verne's top firefighter may soon come to an end as the City Council is poised to appoint Chris Nigg as the new fire department chief.

Officials are expected to finalize the agreement to bring Nigg on as chief at Monday’s City Council meeting, a city staff report said.

The City Council will meet Monday at 6:30 p.m. Members of the public can attend the meeting in person or stream it on La Verne's website.

The La Verne Fire Department has been without a permanent fire chief since 2019, when Chief Pete Jankowski stepped down from the role. Since then, the agency has gone through five interim fire chiefs.

Nigg currently serves as a deputy chief for the Fullerton Fire Department, where he has served since 2015. He previously worked at the San Bernardino City Fire Department, where he got his start as a firefighter in 2004, according to Fullerton's website.

Nigg confirmed with Patch he was finalizing details of his appointment and said it is "an exciting opportunity, which I’m greatly looking forward to."

“It was the consensus of all parties during the extended selection process [for the new chief] that he has the skills, background, and vision to help advance La Verne's department and improve its delivery of fire and emergency medical services to the community,” according to the report.

If his appointment is approved, Nigg would start in the role at the end of the month, the report said.

Nigg would have to deal with several challenges plaguing the fire agency, including flagging morale and dwindling personnel.