PORT ANGELES – After some discussion, Clallam 2 Fire-Rescue has decided they will stick with their decision to ask the voters of the Fire District to support a $.50 increase in the fire levy On the August 4th primary ballot.
In March of this year, the Board of Fire Commissioners passed a resolution to place the proposal on the ballot. Fire Chief Jake Patterson says that despite recent events, it’s still their best shot making much-needed changes and upgrades.
“Yeah, it’s obviously a concern with the unemployment rate and the more and more people being out of work…that it will be a financial strain. But the fact is that the issues were there before 2020 started and they’re going to be there for the foreseeable future. It’s something the District has been putting off for quite a while and, just…it’s unfortunate that this happens to be the year that we went for it.”.
If approved, the regular fire levy will increase from the current level of $0.86 per thousand assessed value to $1.36.
The emergency service needs of the community continue to grow. In the last 10 years the Fire District has seen an 83% increase in emergency calls for service. The vast majority are for medical emergencies.
Patterson says the increase has led to longer response times and more wear and tear on the equipment and vehicles.
“This funding will allow us to fully fund our equipment replacement plan so we can start purchasing some of those larger fire engines, water tenders, and more equipment like that. Plus it will address increasing response times on the west side of our fire district by adding some more additional staff.”