Nuts and bolts of CIFR levies
Dear Editor:
As chair of the Board of Commissioners for Camano Island Fire and Rescue, I wish to address some issues raised by a letter to the editor.
• On the stewardship of tax dollars, the fire district obtained the highest bond rating in the state by being excellent stewards of the district's funds.
The $10 million approved in 2007 are right where they should be: invested and gathering interest, or spent on improvements as planned.
We have experienced delays in the process due to a shortage of personnel in the county's planning department and to environmental and regulatory issues by federal, state and local agencies.
We will break ground for the new Madrona fire station soon. The Country Club station remodel and retrofitting for seismic requirements is well underway.
Bids are in on the Mabana tank and it should be built by winter. The water tender was ordered months ago and takes 200 to 300 days for delivery.
• On the administrative building, the plan was to replace the Terry's Corner fire station with a new headquarters station to house the administrative offices and a 24/7 paid crew of firefighters.
Consultants said the entire Terry's Corner station property was wetland or wetland buffer, and that we could not build anything outside the current footprint.
The district decided to convert the administrative offices into living quarters for a paid crew in a seismic remodel for the safety and comfort of firefighters.
The purchase of the Camano Properties building is an investment acquired at a bargain due to the depressed market. We could never build a new facility for anywhere near the price.
It will provide offices for seven staff members with room for expansion, storage, a meeting room and an emergency operating center.
We plan to share space with the Island County Sheriff's Office and a licensing office, providing rental income to the district and convenience to the public.
• The fire levy does not expire. Camano voters approved the fire levy at $1.25 per $1,000 of assessed value for 2005. That rate, times the assessed value, equals the fire budget dollars for 2005.
In each succeeding year, that budget amount could only be increased by 1 percent, not including new construction, regardless of how much the assessed value for the island had increased.
Due to the change of assessments and inflation, the current fire levy rate has eroded to 84 cents and the EMS levy is down to $0.31 per $1,000. The EMS levy does expire at the end of 2009 unless re-established by the voters.
Due to inflation, costs for operating the department increased annually at a much higher rate than 1 percent. Normal inflation alone is 3-4 percent; costs of health care, fuel, contracted salaries and utilities and have gone up more than normal inflation.
• On staffing, there are seven or eight paid firefighters on duty at any one time for the entire 22-mile long island.
They staff one fire engine, i.e. three firefighter/EMTs at Country Club in the center of the island to respond in all directions; one paramedic ambulance with one paramedic and one firefighter/EMT also based at Country Club, and one crew of two or three firefighter/EMTs at Terry's Corner to staff an engine or an aid car, depending on the nature of the call.
That is exactly why the district is asking for an increase to $1.20 per thousand on the fire levy, from the current $0.84. This increase would staff the new station at Madrona and improve response times for the entire island.
• On south end coverage, the district is aware of concerns of south island residents and thankful that the neighborhood has a very active and responsive group of volunteer firefighters who turn out day and night.
I hope Camano's residents will understand why the district is running the levies. Only they can determine the acceptable level of service. Any more questions, please call 629-3008.
Stephen Lich Camano Island
