May 30, 2024 |
Photo – Two of Elk Mountain Fire Department’s rigs – Courtesy Elk Mtn. Fire Facebook
The Elk Mountain town council chose this week not to join the Carbon County Fire Protection District at this time.
During the November 2022 elections, Carbon County residents voted to form a county-wide fire protection district. The newly established organization is set to respond to emergency calls in the unincorporated areas of Carbon County
In January, Carbon County Fire Protection District Board Vice President Jim Piche met with Elk Mountain officials to convince the small town to enter into an agreement with the fire protection district. Piche said the county would take ownership of all firefighting equipment. The town would be allowed to keep its fire department open, but in the event of a county-wide emergency, the fire protection district could call the Elk Mountain Fire Department to respond.
At the meeting, Elk Mountain Mayor Morgan Irene said he was worried that the county would commandeer the small town’s firefighting equipment during an out-of-town emergency.
Piche assured Mayor Irene that the Elk Mountain Fire Department could refuse to help the fire protection district if doing so left the town unprotected.
In the end, Elk Mountain officials remained skeptical about joining the Carbon County Fire Protection District.
Fast forward to Tuesday night. The Elk Mountain town council briefly met to pass the town’s budget on the second reading. After the successful budget vote, Mayor Irene discussed the possibility of entering into an agreement with the fire protection district. The mayor said he still isn’t willing to accept the county’s terms.
Mayor Irene said 4 mills of Elk Mountain’s net worth equals roughly $7,000 a year. The mayor said the price seems far too low. Mayor Irene said he doesn’t like what the fire protection district is offering the town.
Mayor Irene said allowing the fire protection district to take over the Elk Mountain Fire Department will effectively leave the town with nothing. The mayor said the fire protection district will quickly realize that $7,000 a year is too little money to run the organization.
Mayor Irene said the council should not consider the fire protection district’s offer until they see how the agency operates in other municipalities. The mayor said he expects fire fighters to personally reject the fire district’s proposal.
Mayor Irene said at the January meeting, Carbon County Fire Protection District Board Vice President Piche told them that, if the town refuses to sign the agreement, emergency services might be slower to respond to the town. The mayor said Elk Mountain won’t be coerced to join the district.
Mayor Irene said he doesn’t believe that any other municipalities have signed up with the fire protection district yet. The mayor said the contract being offered to towns is too confusing.
Mayor Irene said Elk Mountain has had difficulty setting up multi-agency agreements in the past. The mayor said the town should not concede any of its firefighting equipment to the fire protection district.
Mayor Irene said the town should not join the Carbon County Fire Protection District until they are presented with a more realistic and agreeable contract. The Elk Mountain town council did not bring the matter up for a vote.
