| HeraldNet - Snohomish County's online news source |
 THURSDAY, JULY 29, 2010 1:47 pm |
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Local News 
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Merger could make Snohomish County's largest fire district a lot larger CLEARVIEW — Snohomish County’s largest fire district could get a whole lot bigger.Officials for Fire District 1 are scheduled to meet Tuesday with their counterparts at Fire District 7 to discuss a possible merger. Advocates say merging the districts could streamline a host of fire and emergency medical operations, save money and provide better service to a combined 280,000 residents. “We’re remiss as public officials if we don’t take a look at these things to see if we can be more efficient,” said Roy Waugh, chairman of the District 7 Board of Directors. Elected leaders for the two districts will hold a joint public meeting to discuss the issue at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Fire District 7’s Clearview headquarters, 8010 180th St. SE. District 1 is the county’s largest fire district, serving more than 150,000 people. Its boundaries stretch across 46 square miles of mostly suburban, unincorporated south Snohomish County. Additionally, the district contracts with the cities of Woodway, Edmonds, Mountlake Terrace and Brier, providing fire and emergency medical service to an additional 70,000 people who live outside district boundaries. District 7 serves about 60,000 mostly rural residents from just west of the Bothell-Everett Highway, south to the King County line in unincorporated Bothell and north to the Snohomish River and a large swath of east county. Under a contract, it also provides fire and emergency medical services to Mill Creek. Discussions between the two districts about a possible merger and an increase in shared services have gone on yearly since 2006, though not last year, District 1 Chairman Jim Kenny said. Tuesday will be the first joint meeting of the districts to discuss the issue since 2008 and since new board members were elected to both districts in November, he said. New discussions, he said, give everyone a chance to take a fresh look at the idea. “We’re starting from ground zero,” Kenny said Friday. “We’re just dipping our toes in the water on Tuesday.” Scott Hamilton, president of the union representing District 1 firefighters, said labor leaders support the idea of a merger. “As we stand right now, both locals are in absolute agreement,” he said. “We are very excited and we anticipate ultimately building a better level of service.” District 1 merged with Snohomish County Fire District 11, which was located near Silver Lake, in the 1990s. The district’s has continued to focus on growth. Its service contract with Edmonds was somewhat controversial during that city’s budget review last year, with critics asking whether the agreement was in everyone’s best interest. The district also has ruffled feathers in Mukilteo by challenging that city’s annexation proposal in court. Waugh said the pending June retirement of District 7 deputy chief Rick Rauma, who oversees emergency medical services, spurred discussions within the district about possibly sharing his replacement’s job with District 1. He said a merger could save both districts money and streamline many of the services they already share through mutual-aid agreements in fire and medical response. “All the people who live around here cross district lines,” he said. They don’t know that. Their expectation is that when someone dials 911, they get efficient service.” District 1, he said, has more medics than District 7, so it might make more sense to combine forces. “We have a seamless response for mutual aid now,” he said. “It’s only logical that, if that’s the case, the planning and location of units and manpower should probably be from a central location.” Both districts will have to consider whether it makes financial sense to consolidate, Kenny said. “We need good, objective information about the benefits and possible advantages and disadvantages,” he said. Oscar Halpert: 425-339-3429, ohalpert@heraldnet.com. |
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