Levy would fuel change in Northside Fire
—Courtesy photo Lieutenant Mike Knott at the scene of a recent fire.
PONDERAY — The Northside Fire District’s levy request on May 17 is aimed at improving its level of service by providing round-the-clock staffing and faster response times.
Chief Brad Mitton and Assistant Chief Danny Knott have been making the rounds in the district to promote the levy and are finding that some residents mistakenly belief stations are staff 24/7.
“It’s amazing how many people think we’re 24/7 because of all of the services we provide,” said Mitton.
Those services include fire suppression, EMS, vehicle extrications, technical rescues, hazardous materials response, fire prevention education, business inspections and CPR training.
The district operates on $428,098 in tax revenue and is asking voters add another $1.5 million in stages over the next three years, which works out to approximately $360,000 a year.
If approved, a home with an exempted value of $100,000 landowners would pay an additional $155.80 annually for three years.
If voters approve the levy request, would hire 12 full-time firefighters over the next three years. Six firefighters would be hired the first year and billeted at the Samuels station, which is currently unattended.
Northside has two paid positions — Knott and Mitton’s — and a roster of 21 volunteers, which has dwindled over the years as volunteers become more scarce across all disciplines of emergency response.
Another driving factor in Northside’s levy is call volume.
In 2010, the district was responding to nearly 300 calls a year. At that time, the district projected that call volume to increase to approximately 450 incidents annually by 2015.
“In 2015, we were at 749 calls,” said Knott
The district had that same call volume in 2014.
The levy is expected to lower residents’ fire insurance ratings in some cases because of 24/7 staffing and the acquisition of a truck that can conduct aerial assaults on fires.
The benefit of staffing at Samuels was underscored when a fire broke out as firefighters were coincidentally checking equipment at that station. Crews were able to substantially contain the damage.
“That’s how important it is to man that station,” said Mitton.