CalFire Packing, Marysville to Go Out on Own

June 04--Marysville will part ways with CalFire and start its own fire department, the City Council decided Tuesday night.

The council voted 3-2 to end its relationship with the state agency that has provided fire and rescue service for the past 17 years, citing increasing costs during a time of severe budget constraints.

Councilman Jim Kitchen switched his vote from last week's 3-2 vote to delay taking action until after a sales tax measure planned for the November election. Kitchen was joined by Mayor Ricky Samayoa and Councilman Chris Pedigo in supporting moving forward with a city department.

Kitchen said after the meeting he "always supported the idea of having a city fire department." He said he switched his vote after speaking with Pedigo and City Manager Walter Munchheimer, realizing that it would be too costly for the city.

"Looking at the numbers themselves, they are unaffordable for us to go in that direction," Samayoa said of staying with CalFire. "There is no way we can afford this without making cuts in the budget."

Marysville officials admit that starting a new department will be a major task. But the city already owns the fire station and all of the vehicles and apparatus, meaning it will just have to hire a new chief and replacements for nine state-funded personnel.

Cost projections provided by CalFire show it would cost the city $1.7 million for fire service in 2016-17. Munchheimer has estimated it would cost a new city department $1.4 million.

However, Councilman Michael Selvidge noted cost estimates presented to the city are "rough calculations."

"We don't know," he said. "There could be problems."

Selvidge said the "elephant in the room" is the city debt service for vacant commercial property the city owns on B Street.

The city in its 2014-15 budget is obligated to make bond payments of $240,938 on Oct. 1 and April 1 on the city-owned property along B Street across from Ellis Lake. Those payments will increase to $641,875 in 2015-16 and climb to a maximum of $659,587 in 2036.

Selvidge said without debt service, the city wouldn't need to be talking about cutting fire department costs.

"If we spent a portion of the time we have spent on this (fire service) on talking about the B Street property, we wouldn't have this problem," Selvidge said. "This city seriously needs to look at Chapter 9 (bankruptcy). I urge the council to open its eyes and do something with the B Street property."

Samayoa said the issue of B Street debt service will be addressed when the council considers the 2014-15 budget on June 17.

Before the vote to create a city department, the council voted 4-1 to reconsider last week's action. Samayoa, Kitchen, Pedigo and Dale Whitmore voted for reconsideration while Selvidge voted in opposition.

But Whitmore opposed starting a new department in the following 3-2 vote.

"This needs more research," he said. "I am not comfortable voting on this at this time."

CalFire put Marysville on notice last December it intended to not renew its agreement with the city when it expires the end of this month. The agency, after providing cost estimates on what it would take to stay, has agreed to extend the existing agreement until June 2015, giving the city about a year to set up a new department.

CONTACT Eric Vodden at 749-4769.

Copyright 2014 - Appeal-Democrat, Marysville, Calif.