Should A Fire District Be Created?

Approximately two years ago the Town of Snowflake put together a committee to look at possibilities to meet the needs of the fire department. A fire district was discussed, and the Snowflake Fire Department was gearing up to educate people on a fire district when it was noted that including Taylor would be an advantage for both communities, so Taylor representatives began meeting with the Snowflake committee.

Taylor Councilmen Lynn DeWitt and Carl Cosper served on that committee, which was chaired by Snowflake Councilman Terril Kay.

The committee has taken a first step toward integrating the fire departments of the two towns and the ambulance service, but in order to do that, there must be an agreement in place.

An Administrative Committee has been working with both the Taylor and Snowflake town attorneys to develop an agreement.

Officials of the Risk Pool, the insurance company for both towns, reviewed the agreement and made suggestions that have been incorporated into it. Public hearings were held by the Snowflake Town Council meeting on April 14 and the Taylor Town Council on April 21.

No public comments were made at the Snowflake hearing, but several firefighters from both communities attended the Taylor hearing.

“The IGA is progress, maybe sometime you can go to a fire district,” said Scott Vowell, a full-time firefighter in Heber and avolunteer in Taylor.

Justin Kriter, a full-time firefighter in Vernon and a volunteer in Taylor, said he felt the agreement would cut down on response time, but as the meeting progressed it became confrontational at times between council members and firefighters who were adamant about going to a fire district.

“I believe a district is the way to go; you get what you pay for,” said Vowell, noting that if residents were educated on a district they would be in favor of paying a tax to support the fire department.

“I buy service, I don’t buy price,” said Kriter.

“Our fire department was willing to go out and look for a district, but the politicians said no, don’t do that,” said Snowflake Interim Fire Chief Dale Call, who happened to be at the meeting for a different agenda item. He said he didn’t feel the agreement would be a benefit, stating, “Everything I’ve seen on this IGA, it doesn’t allow me to buy more gear…”

“I’m on a fixed income,” said Steve Foster, a Taylor senior citizen who noted that he felt that politicians have a dream and feel they can just tax people. “There is no consideration to people that have a lot of trouble paying.”

Cindy Schreiber and Loretta Witlow represented the Silver Creek Senior Center, explaining that for many of the people they serve, it would be a choice of eating, buying medications or paying a higher tax.

“I’m here to hold the purse strings, and do things as efficiently and inexpensive as we possibly can,” said Councilman DeWitt. “We decided we would not form a fire district” because of the cost to the citizens.

“There’s a lot of ways we can impose taxes to do this…we’re trying to avoid that at all costs,” Mayor Fay Hatch said to the firefighters. “That’s why we’re doing this (the IGA).”

In an April 23 interview, with Snowflake Town Manager Paul Watson said that as long as the fire department is part of the town and as long as the town budgets are as constrained as they are, “we will never be adequately funded without a new source of income.”

Snowflake and Taylor’s combined budget for fire and ambulance is approximately $500,000, while communities around them with similar population have budgets of $8 million. “This tells you we operate on a shoestring,” he said.

Watson noted that the desire is to try to find additional revenue sources to help with equipment, fire trucks and so forth. “The issue is how and when do we pursue that concept,” he said. “Some feel that if you present the information and educate the people properly, you can get a fire district approved now.

“My personal opinion is, until the economy gets back on its track and until you have a broader tax base, i.e. new industries or businesses, to help cover that tax, it is too big of a challenge for our existing residents and businesses to take or support.

“It’s timing, so in my opinion, uniting the two fire departments into one is a good first step to show the communities that we want to do all we can to provide the best services, and to do so within our existing budget.”

Watson summed it all up, stating, “I believe we will have a much better chance of success if a fire district is tied to a stronger and healthier economy.

“Snowflake recognizes at some point we need to provide additional funding. It’s just timing of when that is.”