By Ken Brown
At the Orcas Island Fire Commissioner’s Meeting on September 13, a ceremony commemorating the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 Twin Tower attacks in New York City, and the dedication of the new fire station in Deer Harbor started the meeting off with feelings of pride and accomplishment. The meeting concluded with some sharp public comments.
Completion of the Deer Harbor Fire Station involves continued negotiations for a water membership agreement with Cayou Valley Water Association,
The Assocation’s Counsel, member Chuck Kelhoffer, spoke of concerns about the fire district’s “hunger” for water. Commissioner Jim Coffin said that during negotiations, he had assured the Cayou Valley Water Association that the fire district “won’t tread on their concerns” and that water would be utilized for only true fire emergencies. (As members, the monthly allotted usage is 4,000 gallons.)
Coffin stated he would like to run the draft of the water association agreement past counsel for its opinion. Chief Mike Harris said, “This is an indefinite agreement.”
The county is now reviewing the landscape package for the Deer Harbor Station; a “walk-through” inspection was scheduled for Sept. 15 with landscape designer Carol McCoy. The next step will be to request bids for the actual work.
The current landscaping agreement was approved by the Fire Commissioners, subject to counsel input.
The 2012-2017 Strategic Plan was discussed with the focus on three aspects of long range projections. Chief Financial Officer Rick Anda and Commissioner Clyde Duke have brought forward nine drafts of projected financials. They will be presented to the Association of Firefighters for comment. Then the draft will go before the board.
The idea said Duke, is to create a forum to roll out the financial long range goals which will promote input and lead to greater understanding of what lies ahead.
Commissioner Barbara Bedell’s committee on improved and long range communication goals is moving forward towards a draft report.
Coffin continues to work on a revised handbook for employees which reflects the changes and improvements envisioned for Orcas Island Fire District #2.
In other business, Chief Harris and Commissioner Bedell are tasked with replacing Harris, whose contract concludes at the end of the year. They are both reviewing applications. Bedell and Harris have started a draft of the fire chief’s job description with a sharper, cleaner outline of what is critical for the role of Fire Chief.
Public comments were lively. The first remarks came from Dwight Guss who
clarified additional work to be completed at the Deer Harbor Station.The heating system will be up and running once the hook up is triggered.
Pierrette Guimond then requested the dollar commitment for the Cayou Vally Water membership and was told it would cost $15,000 with an annual fee of $450. Duke added there is an additional cost of up to $7,000 for improvements to the system. This includes the hydrants that were already installed.
Mike Durland had concerns as to why his boat yard was shut down as an immediate fire danger. As a result, he had appeared in Superior Court for three days. Durland accused Chief Harris of misrepresentation of facts.
Bedell and Coffin both stated that the Fire Commissioners meeting was an improper forum to discuss Durland’s concerns.
The meeting concluded with a series of chimes to commemorate the 343 slain firefighters during the 9/11 tragedy. Chief Harris plans to institute this ritual at the start of each meeting.
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