By QUINTON SMITH/YachatsNews.com
Election contests for a seat on the Central Oregon Coast Fire & Rescue board are usually no contest at all.
In the past 10 years, only one election – in May 2017 – had any contested races for board positions. In 2017, unusual circumstances had all five board seats up for election, and there were contested races in three of them.
Not this May.
Controversy that has dogged the district for at least two years and uproar over former Chief Gary Woodson has resulted in two contested races and longtime board chair Tim Grady not seeking re-election.
Ballots are due back to the Lincoln County clerk by 8 p.m. Tuesday. Results will be known that night.
Clerk Dana Jenkins advises that voters no longer mail in their ballots, but instead use secure ballot drop boxes at city halls in Waldport, Yachats, or Newport, and outside the county courthouse.
For background on what has led up to much of the turmoil, go to a news story posted Friday on YachatsNews’ website.
New board members will be seated in July for four-year terms. That’s when Grady, who was first elected to the board when the fire district was formed in 1998, will step down.
Running unopposed for his Position 1 seat is Buster Pankey of Waldport, who is also a Port of Alsea commissioner.
Peter Carlich of Tidewater was appointed to Position 2 on the board in 2019 and is being challenged by Todd Holt of Waldport. Carlich is the only current board member who opposed paying Woodson three months salary and benefits in February to leave the district and promise not to sue for wrongful dismissal. Carlich told YachatsNews the board should have fired Woodson for cause.
Dave Brooks of Waldport, who has been on the board for 16 years, is being challenged by Greg Dunn of Waldport, a COCF&R volunteer firefighter/medic and Waldport city councilor, and Kathryn Menefee of Tidewater. Menefee is married to Nestor Alves, a former COCF&R captain fired by Woodson in 2018 for not getting his EMT certification and who is suing the district for $1.1 million alleging he was discriminated against because of his race.
Should Menefee join the board, under Oregon law when the board discusses her husband’s lawsuit she will have to declare a conflict of interest and cannot participate in any discussion or debate on the issue and is prohibited from voting on anything related to the lawsuit.
Please concisely list your education, all work and/or professional experience, civic activities, and any previous service on appointed or elected boards:
Position 1:
Ramon (Buster) Pankey: I graduated from Waldport High School in 1974. I have been a federally licensed crane operator, and a licensed tugboat captain and have a commercial driver’s license for heavy equipment. I owned and operated a marine construction company for 25 years have extensive experience of working on the water. I have been Port of Alsea commissioner for 4 1/2 years and am running again unopposed. I am president of the Waldport Lions Club, helping the club completely restructure to be in compliance with its state and federal non-profit status.
Position 2
Peter Carlich: I was raised in Tillamook and graduated from high school there. I apprenticed as a steel fabricator in California, went to school to learn to deep sea dive and then worked on an oil rig off the coast of Louisiana. In the mid-1970s I moved back to Oregon and worked at a specialty fabrication shop in Eugene, which built equipment for sawmills. I moved back to the Oregon coast in the early 1980s and started Reliable Steam Engine Co. in Waldport, building marine steam engines and boilers for wooden boats. I was also a licensed general contractor, building docks and ramps on the Alsea River. I served on the Westwood Village Road District board in Tidewater for six years. In 2016 I started regularly attending Central Oregon Coast Fire & Rescue board meetings. My main focus was seeing the Tidewater station brought back to life as a working fire station. I was then asked to serve on the district’s Budget Committee and later on a Citizen’s Advisory Committee. When a board opening came up in 2019, I applied for the position and was appointed.
Todd Holt: I graduated from Waldport High School in 1980, was a dairy farmer for 15 years and then worked in outside sales in the trucking industry for 24 years. Over last 35 years I served on the Tillamook County Farm Bureau board, Land ‘o Lakes feed division board, city of Lafayette (Ore.) Planning Commission for seven years, Lafayette water resource committee for 10 years, and on the Yamhill County Historical Society board for nine years. Currently I own and manage, with my spouse, Thomas Holt Peterson mobile home park.
Position 3:
Greg Dunn: I attended Taft College and received certificates as a reserve police officer and attended a correctional officer academy. I also attended Bakersfield College, went through the police academy and studied criminal justice; I have a certificate in telecommunications and business management. For the past 28 years I have been in the pest control industry and for the last 10 years I have owned my own pest control company. Over the last few years, we have added a crawlspace restoration division to our company. I am currently running on my second term on the Waldport City Council. I am a member of the Waldport High School Boosters Club and volunteer a lot of my time as a photographer for various high sports teams. Although I have not volunteered much over the last year, I am still a COCF&R volunteer.
Kathryn Menefee: Masters degree in nursing from Gonzaga University; Bachelors in nursing from Oregon Health Sciences University, and associates degree in nursing from Central Oregon Community College. Worked as a nurse at St. Charles Medical Center in Bend from 1997-2009 in acute rehab, then in the medical, surgical, orthopedic, telemetry and psychiatric units. I worked as a nurse at Samaritan in San Jose on the medical, surgical, orthopedic and oncology floors for one year while finishing my Masters degree. From 2012-18 I worked as a nurse at Samaritan Pacific Communities Hospital in Newport, and since then have continued to pick up shifts in the Emergency Department but primarily work as a Hospitalist. I was a founding member of the Meth Action Coalition in Bend and assisted in creating and leading a support group called the “Friends and Family of those addicted to Meth.” I assisted in putting on two large conferences to educate the community regarding meth addiction, need for rehab and support. I assisted in creating a 401(c)3 for this non-profit group and served as board vice president.
Question: Why are you running for the COCF&R board?
Position 1
Pankey: I believe as a board member we should have a well-planned budget and not go after taxpayer funds unless no other option is available. I do not believe the taxpayers who paid for the Waldport fire hall building and City Hall should be asked to pay for those facilities again, which is being proposed by the city of Waldport. A realistic working budget is a must for any entity to move on into the future and bring forth the best fire protection and water rescue service possible for the district.
Position 2
Holt: I am running for the fire district board because I believe it has been poorly managed for many years and has not been transparent to the taxpayers who fund it. I want to see a change.
Carlich: That answer is also simple — to make things better for our community. We live in Tidewater, a stunningly beautiful area that we call home, and for years and years the fire district just let the Tidewater station die a slow death. Every single meeting that I went to I asked “What about Tidewater?” This went on for years. The answers were “We are working on it.”
Progress was slow so at one of the budget meetings I along with other board members got $170,000 put into the next year’s budget. Now our station is almost built, and it is looking really great and soon we will have a grand opening. I want Tidewater to be an operating station, and for those of us who live here it is going to be great to have our station going again. I will always fight to protect the Tidewater and Waldport communities.
Position 3:
Menefee: I have lived in this community for eight years. I want to know that if any of us ever have the need of the fire departments services that those who are responding have appropriate training, adequate personal, sufficient support and safe operating equipment in order to ensure not only the firefighters safety, but the community members as well.
Over the past few years I have watched the board make decisions that have negatively affected our department, our community and have not managed taxpayer’s dollars in a prudent way. They have allowed discrimination, retaliation, sexual harassment, unsafe practices, and the resignation of a medical director secondary to the former chief’s actions, as well as continued deferred maintenance of our fire department and equipment. Their decisions have placed our firefighters and community members at risk.
Our rural fire departments are in financial stress. Now is the time for creative new ideas on addressing the issues that are facing our fire department. There needs to be more transparency regarding the issues at hand.
For years I have attended board meetings, sent letters to the current board, posted on social media and brought issues to our reporting agencies regarding the former chief, board decisions, training, etc. Not only did the board not verbally respond to the issues presented, they failed to take any action at all. They continued to support the former chief and wasted our tax dollars. They kept concerning issues from the community and hid behind executive session meetings. This type of behavior has to stop. As a community member I worked to cause positive change in the fire department and with the board and, if elected, will continue to do so as a board member.
I care about this community. I care about our firefighters and the department. The community deserves the truth in a timely, efficient and open manner. The firefighters deserve appropriate training, appropriate and effective equipment as well as a department that meets NFPA guidelines and codes. I am passionate regarding these issues and as a board member I feel that I can continue to work towards these goals and positive change.
Dunn: I am running for the COCF&R board because I feel it is time for a change and I believe our community is ready and deserves this change. We have all seen the news articles lately and the ones from the past. I feel we all agree it is time to make positive changes and it is long overdue to put the trust back into the fire district board.
If I am elected I can further strengthen and benefit our board, the relationship with our firefighters and our community. I also believe that because of my years as a volunteer firefighter I can offer a fresh perspective and a great understanding to the needs of others. I know I can bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to the table.
I have a great passion for this community and the fire department, and this passion will help keep our district strong. I respect and understand our firefighters concerns and hope to be able to make a change for the better. I understand that our community wants transparency with the fire board, and I plan to bring just that to the table if I am elected.
Brooks: The owner of Alsea Bay Power Equipment did not respond to any of the questions from YachatsNews, but did send one statement: “I am excited about the future of COCF&R. Our new fire chief, J. Mason, is an excellent trainer, has great relationships with the staff and volunteers. Rick Booth, president of the volunteers is doing a wonderful job working with and recruiting new volunteers. The board of directors have done a great job over the last few years working to get the budget in line and with positive financial statements. As the treasurer I am very happy what we have done for the COCFR district. Our mutual aid agreements with Seal Rock Fire District and Yachats Fire are excellent and will continue to benefit all our citizens. I have over 50 years of experience managing and owning successful businesses, I hope to continue my service on the COCFR board and for community.”
Question: What experience or traits would make you a good board member? Would you embrace the work and training necessary to be a conscientious board member?
Position 1
Pankey: I have lived in this community all of my life. I am retired now and wanting to help in the community wherever I feel I can be of service. I grew up with my dad and uncles being in the Waldport Fire Department and I have great memories of that. My dad (Ramon Pankey) and other civic minded volunteers started and ran the Waldport Ambulance, which we no longer have. If training is required to be a better board member I absolutely would do that.
Position 2
Carlich: Good board members always ask lots of questions because the decisions we make affect every single member of our community and it’s very important to get it right. And, when we are wrong, face up to it and fall on the sword to make it right.
Holt: I have in the past been involved in joining boards and cities that were in disarray with major issues financial and infrastructure. One example — the city of Lafayette had water issues for years. We formed a committee of five volunteers under council sanction and went to work to resolve the water crisis every summer. We found out that we had water but it was just not being managed. After 10 years the city tied into McMinnville’s water system and then went on to purchase the water rights of the old paper mill in Albany. So Yamhill County will have all of the water it needs for 100 years. I believe that you need to continue training and you should always be learning to improve your skills.
Position 3
Dunn: I was recently elected to a second term on the Waldport City Council. I also have experience as a volunteer firefighter. These two things I feel is an extra bonus. I know how these meetings work. I know what executive sessions are for and how they operate. I also know some of what our firefighters needs and concerns are.
I will definitely embrace the work needed and will work hard with the firefighters and community. I know in the beginning it will be an uphill battle to turn things around to gain our firefighters and communities trust back, but I am ready for the challenge.
Menefee: During my tenure in emergency medicine I have had the privilege of working with many of our community’s firefighters and first responders. This experience has provided me with insights to their needs and issues.
Additionally, as a nurse practitioner, I have to be able to communicate well with others, work within a team to achieve common and identifiable goals. I am constantly learning, seeking out new opportunities and welcome training that will benefit the patients that I serve. I believe that these experiences will serve me well when working as a board member.
I am also very dedicated to work through issues and problems to find solutions. I persevere even when met with obstacles and roadblocks. I have a curious nature and I am not afraid to ask questions or have difficult discussions. I am also able to see varying perspectives and will not hesitate to change a course of action if it meets the greater good.
I believe in transparency. I believe in honesty. I believe that the needs of the community and the firefighters should be held up and supported. I am a hard worker and will consistently work towards improving our fire department while being fiscally responsible.
I believe in community involvement and will actively work to promote relations between the fire department and the community. I will advocate that the voices of our community members and firefighters are heard. I will also ensure that pertinent information or issues are brought forward to the community in a timely, effective and transparent manner- just as I have done for the last several years as a concerned community member.
Question: What are the district’s challenges, strengths and, if elected, what are 2-3 of your top priorities?
Position 1
Pankey: Come up with a realistic budget and not waste taxpayer money. Make sure firefighting equipment is in good working order and up to date and to maintain equipment that is stationed in Tidewater and Five Rivers. I do not believe this other equipment and buildings have been maintained under the former chief. I do not believe training was carried out during that time also. Training needs to be done to keep our firefighters sharp.
Position 2
Holt: Leadership is the No. 1 challenge the district has had in the past and the lack of transparency. The district’s strength has been is dedicated employees and volunteers. My first priority is to find out the inventory of equipment and buildings, to see the financials and what is going to be coming at the district now and in the future. We already know the district has to make the decision on the current main station/former City Hall.
Carlich: In the past the challenges were always in retaining a chief. It seems that older fire chiefs are attracted to us and the experience has always been not a good one, as mostly they are just looking to finish out their retirement time on us, which means they bring nothing new to the table. We really lucked out when we hired Jamie Mason as fire chief. He is 40 and at the top of his game in the fire business and has tons of credentials. But the best part is that he has a 20-year plan for the district. He is an excellent fit for the district and for the board.
Priorities are — we need more money. I know everybody says they need more money, but in this case it’s true. Our main fire engine is 20 years old and gets used constantly. We recently put $50,000 in it to renew it, but you end up with old parts trying to get along with new parts. We are slapping Band Aids on equipment that needs to be replaced. Next is the main fire station. The way it sits it is just not working. There is not enough space for the equipment, heck there isn’t even a single floor drain, and to boot it is not earthquake proof either. We desperately need to upgrade and enlarge our building, to give district residents the protection that they need, and we need to have more volunteers because without them the few paid staff would struggle without their help. And, of course, I want the Tidewater station finished and operating.
Position 3
Menefee: The challenges facing the district include, but are not limited to: finances, personnel, equipment, the Tidewater and Five River stations, community relationships, and consideration and formal merger/consolidation with the Seal Rock and Yachats fire districts.
Finances are the most pressing challenge facing the district, as all else flows from there. We currently do not have enough trained, active firefighters to respond to the needs of our community. We need additional funds to train, hire and retain personal.
My top three priorities if elected are: 1. Addressing our needs and current financial state in order to prioritize and act on findings solutions in order to meet the needs of a appropriate fire department building, attracting and retaining appropriate personal and firefighters, etc.; 2. Working towards finding solutions, such as consolidation/merger, to meet our ever-growing community needs, as well as improving available resources, by strengthening our relationships and partnerships with our neighboring communities and fire districts; and 3. Improving the board’s communication and transparency on information and issues to the community while encouraging community members’ involvement and participation in finding solutions.
While the challenges are many, they are not insurmountable. By utilizing the strengths of our current chief’s insights and experience, the dedication of the current personal and volunteers and the support of our amazing community members, I believe that these issues can be addressed and achieved. It is through trust, communication and partnership that our fire district will overcome and excel in the days and years to come.
Dunn: Some of the challenges the board faces will have to be gaining back the community’s trust. Our firefighters and the community have lost all faith in the current board and it is time we turn that around. Some strengths we have is our new chief and the dedicated paid and volunteer staff. With them and the new board many positive changes can happen.
One, I will make sure that we are transparent in our decision-making. Two, I will make sure our community and firefighters concerns are heard and addressed. And third, I will work hard to make sure our tax dollars are being spent wisely.
Question: The COF&R Board and former chief Gary Woodson agreed on a separation agreement in February. Are you satisfied with the board’s oversight of Woodson the previous three years? What would you have done, or advocated for, earlier to prevent or solve such an issue with a fire chief?
Position 1:
Pankey: I do not believe the handling of removing former Chief Woodson was handled correctly at all. There were red flags about Woodson that went on for too long without being addressed by current board. The hiring of the new chief was not done with the proper procedure either. I am not saying he is not right for the position, but there is proper and legal procedure to follow when going through the hiring process.
Position 2
Carlich: I will answer this as best I can because there are some things discussed in executive session that I am legally forbidden to talk about. There were complaints filed against Chief Woodson which I felt could have and should have been handled in house. Instead the board hired an investigator to determine the validity of those claims. I felt the claims were strong enough for immediate termination, and I voiced them to the board. Instead he was placed on administrative leave while the claims were looked at by a second investigator. In the end he was given a separation agreement, which I also did not agree with. Simply speaking the board did a poor job of handling the entire Woodson mess.
Holt: The current board did not handle the previous chief at all until the firefighters, volunteers and the taxpayers had enough. The past chief was poorly vetted and then let him do what ever he wanted. It all starts with a good hiring process.
Position 3
Dunn: Many concerns were brought to the board numerous times from our firefighters and our community members. These concerns should have been taken more seriously or should have been addressed. I do believe that the board was not transparent with these concerns people were bringing to them.
I would advocate for more information on the situations. I would have advocated to have anonymous evaluation forms sent to all volunteer and staff evaluating the chief’s performance. Such issues would have been possibly dealt with before it got to the point it did.
If elected I would love to implement these evaluations at least yearly. I think it is important that the board know from staff members and volunteers what is happening and what concerns they may have so we can better address the concerns that may arise. I feel by doing confidential evaluations our firefighters will feel more comfortable and not be afraid of retaliation.
Menefee: I believe that I have been quite outspoken regarding the former chief, Gary Woodson, and the board’s oversight of Woodson over the past three years, but I will recap here.
I am in no way supportive or satisfied with the way that the COF&R Board handled the oversight or separation of Gary Woodson. There were multiple times that the board was presented with documents, statements and reports regarding Woodson’s actions and chose not to respond or act.
July 2018 at a board meeting, several community members, firefighters and the president of the volunteer association attempted to present their concerns regarding Woodson to the board. However, the board members caught wind of this and made a statement, which they had never done previously, that no verbal reports, concerns or issues regarding Woodson could be brought up in the meeting and they would only accept written documents for consideration. At that meeting, the president of the volunteers association gave each board member a written document outlining safety concerns, performance concerns, and management concerns regarding Woodson. At that time the president of the volunteers association demanded immediate action or she would resign. Not only did the members of the board not ever verbally respond to the concerns, they failed to act on any of the issues presented. Subsequently the department lost many of its personal and volunteers, and still the board did not respond.
In 2019 the board was presented with investigation findings, from the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries that found substantial evidence for discrimination and retaliation. Again, the board did not act.
The board failed to provide adequate oversight regarding the truthfulness of Woodson’s reports, actions or management. As such, they essentially continued to support a climate of racism, retaliation and harassment at the cost of the personal, department and community.
As the report published May 7 by YachatsNews states, despite multiple issues being presented to the board regarding Woodson they failed to act on any of them until presented with a sexual harassment complaint by one of their employees. Even then, they delayed action and in the end did not fire Woodson, but rather paid him to leave. Paid him with taxpayer dollars for an offense that was a legally, morally and ethically an offense that should have ended in termination with cause. Then the board members chose not to apprise the community of this and it was only after the YachatsNews contacted the district attorney, did they provide the documents that were legally requested.
This type of behavior has been tolerated and allowed to continue for far too long. It is time for our community to demand positive change. The community deserves to know where their tax dollars are going. They deserve to have a board the will be excellent stewards of the tax dollars while providing the best training and support services possible. The community deserves to have a board that is transparent in their actions and honest in their deeds. The firefighters deserve a board that is constantly looking to meet the challenges of today and preparing for the future.
Question: The COCF&R district has an intergovernmental agreement with the Seal Rock Fire District to share personnel and equipment. Do you support a full merger/consolidation with the Seal Rock district? What about with the Yachats Rural Fire Protection District?
Position 1
Pankey: I have read the intergovernmental agreement with Seal Rock Fire District and it seems to be adequate. Merging with Seal Rock is a possibility, but Yachats I am not sure about.
Position 2
Holt: I have read the intergovernmental agreement with Seal Rock and it’s very well done. The next step would be to merge the two districts down the road. Makes since reduce your overhead and add personal. I think Yachats should be part of the new district, but as of late we have found out they have some financial issues that would need to be checked out and see if it would make since to bring them into the new district.
Carlich: Again this also is a sticky situation, however my own personal opinion is that yes, we should merge with Seal Rock and Yachats. To begin with we would all have a much better fire insurance rating if we were one district, lowering all of our fire insurance costs. In addition, I believe there would be a substantial reduction in our property tax base to our residents as you are spreading out those costs three ways. And, lastly instead of paying for three fire chiefs you would now pay only one chief. That is the easy part. The hard part is trying to get the three districts to start those talks, without getting into turf wars of “You are trying to steal our territory.” Yes, we have an intergovernmental agreement with Seal Rock and that’s a great start. But let’s start serious discussions now before we run into trouble, which is just around the corner. As a COCF&R board member, I will meet with any members of other districts to get this ball rolling. Merging is the only answer for all of us.
Position 3
Menefee: In this time of financial stress and insecurity with our rural fire departments it only makes sense to combine our resources in order to provide enough personal, appropriate equipment and facilities so that they can respond to the needs of the community in a safe, effective and fiscally responsible manner.
I fully support further exploration and consideration for a full merger/consolidation with the Seal Rock Fire District. I also support reaching out to the Yachats Rural Fire Protection District to join as well.
I believe that by consolidating we will be able to provide improved training, appropriate equipment and sufficient personal to meet the needs of all three communities in a more fiscally responsible manner.
The issues surrounding consolidation or mergers are complex. People sometimes have difficulty with change and any merger of our rural fire departments represent great change. People are concerned if this idea will work, but there are several examples of how this can be successful. Fire departments demonstrate that they are some of the best at working together. Think about all the fire departments that came together to fight last season’s unprecedented wildfires. Think about each time our neighboring fire departments provide mutual aid. Our fire departments already work together, a merger makes it more official and saves taxpayers’ money.
By merging, we can take the best of each of our neighboring departments to have improved outcomes. I encourage our community members, as well as our neighboring communities, to research combining firefighting resources. There is a wealth of information out there to support this approach and research has shown improved safety for firefighters and maximizing resources while reducing overall costs. This can truly be a win- win situation for all.
Dunn: I am 100 percent in support of the intergovernmental agreement between the Seal Rock Fire District and Central Oregon Coast Fire & Rescue. This is a win for both departments and residents living in these communities.
When a 911 call for service is made you will be getting both departments responding. This means more personnel at the scene and shared equipment when needed. When you must make that 911 call you do not want to wait until the first unit gets on scene and they realize they need more personnel. Time is critical on any emergency so why take the chance. Our communities deserve the absolute best, and this is what they will get under this agreement.
As for Yachats, I feel it would be in the best interest of all three districts if they were to merge as one. We live in a location that widely depends on volunteer firefighters to help with the career staff. As I stated, our communities and taxpayers deserve the absolute best service we can provide. Sharing resources between departments will give taxpayers a better security when it comes to whatever emergency that may arise.
Question: Anything else you would like to say or comment on? This is your chance – on any topic related to the COCF&R district, board or issues.
Position 1
Pankey: I would like to serve our community to keep taxpayer burden as low as possible. To make the fire district and board looked upon with respect and with a transparency to board meetings and welcome public support and questions to serve our fire district well.
Position 2
Carlich: I think I have been open and honest with each and every one of you and that’s the way it should be.
Holt: My overall goal is to see the district grow with the times and stay properly funded now and to the future.
Position 3
Dunn: I feel that I am the best candidate because of my experience and background. Sure, anyone can be seated on the board, but wouldn’t it be nice to have someone who has the experience and knowledge with the fire department? I feel it would also be nice to have someone who has prior experience sitting on a board.
I currently have a great working relationship with our community members. And I hope I will get to bring that relationship through the COCF&R board. Immediate change is needed — be it me or another candidate. I hope to get your vote on this important election.
Menefee: Over the last several years I have worked diligently to bring the issues regarding the former chief and the current board to the attention of the community. I have continued to push for transparency, honesty and action and will continue to do so if elected. I believe that we are in a pivotal time to invoke positive change for the betterment of the fire department, its personal and the community. I will continue to work just as diligently for our fire department and community as a board member as I have as a community citizen. I appreciate your time, consideration and support.