By QUINTON SMITH/YachatsNews.com
The chiefs and two board members of fire districts in Seal Rock and Waldport plan to meet next week in what could be a series of discussions whether a joint operating agreement can be saved.
At issue is a 2-year-old agreement allowing firefighters in the neighboring departments to work, train and live together and respond to emergencies in both districts on a Central Oregon Coast Fire & Rescue engine. The goal was to have enough staff – each district currently has four paid firefighters – to respond to calls with two to three personnel on an engine.
But the Seal Rock Fire District, which underwent a change of most board members last year, voted Jan. 20 to end the agreement in May if it’s not renegotiated to correct what it sees as deficiencies. A majority believes Seal Rock firefighters spend too much time in Waldport, have neglected Seal Rock facilities and equipment, and that it is providing the same number of firefighters as COCF&R while that district generates three to four times the number of calls.
At Seal Rock’s Jan. 20 meeting, Rimola issued a long written statement attacking their former chief who was fired in October, criticized Mason for responding to a Seal Rock board request last July to analyze its budget, accused Mason of not discussing the agreement “in good faith,” criticized a union letter posted on Facebook, and said COCF&R information officer Erich Knudson unfairly attacked Seal Rock in a Newport News-Times newspaper article.
“We tried; it is now time to quit,” Rimola said in his statement. “We need to move on with business that actually benefits our district …”
Mason disputed that last week at COCF&R’s board meeting. He said he was asked by Seal Rock’s former chief and its board to “run numbers” for their 2021-22 budget and did not recommend what levy amount they should ask voters to pass.
“I’m not a fan of people creating a narrative unless it’s a true narrative,” Mason told his board.
He urged the board to have its two oversight committee members meet soon with Seal Rock to see if the issues could be resolved. Pankey said he would try to schedule a meeting this week.
Menefee said the COCF&R board needs to hear Seal Rock’s concerns and how they might be addressed.
“I hear your frustration and concerns,” Menefee told Mason. “We need to stop the ‘He said, she said’ and have a meeting. I want to hear what they have to say. But I hope we can come up with a stronger contract.”
COCF&R has a “Plan B”
But Central Coast may be ready to go its own way if Seal Rock board members want to end the sharing agreement.
COCF&R Chief Jamie Mason says two-man firefighting crews are essential for safety.
At its meeting last week, Mason presented a proposal to hire two firefighters on temporary contracts for eight months, after which it expects to receive a federal grant to hire two firefighters for three years. The temporary contracts – which come without retirement or other benefits – would cost the district $70,000.
The temporary hires would allow Central Coast to always respond to emergencies with a crew of two firefighters, Mason said, no matter what Seal Rock decides to do.
“If we do this do we really need the intergovernmental agreement?” asked board member Kevin Battles. “If the Seal Rock meeting goes bad, then absolutely I say we do this.”
Bucher, the COCF&R firefighter and union leader who attended the Jan. 20 Seal Rock meeting said that “based on what I saw at that meeting, there is no chance of them really wanting to continue the intergovernmental agreement.”
Mason said the 2-year-old agreement with Seal Rock came after it responded to a car and garage fire with one firefighter, who ran into trouble and was “ready to quit on the spot because of safety issues.”
“This is a safety level we will not drop below,” Mason said of two-firefighter crews.
Menefee said she believed it was in the best interests of both districts to continue the sharing agreement, but that a meeting with the board committees was necessary to see if they could sort out issues.
“Let’s at least try to do it if we can,” she said of addressing Seal Rock’s issues. “Let’s have a conversation.”
- Quinton Smith, a longtime Oregon journalist, is the founder and editor of YachatsNews.com and can be reached at YachatsNews@gmail.com