Firefighters pick Arlington Rural

ARLINGTON — Call it a rebranding effort.

In recent years, leaders at Snohomish County Fire District 21 have been trying to move away from calling the district “Arlington Heights,” a misnomer that has stuck since the 1970s.

“A lot of people don’t realize it, but we’ve always been Fire District 21,” assistant fire chief Branden Bates said.

They either call themselves Fire District 21 or Arlington Rural, he said. Most of the department’s vehicles say Arlington Rural.

District officials are hopeful that being more consistent will help clear up any confusion, Bates said. They want better name recognition while working with the community and when putting measures on election ballots, such as levies.

Fire District 21 serves about 7,800 people over 68 square miles surrounding Arlington city limits. The 2011 budget was $950,000.

The district employs about 30 volunteer firefighters. They work closely with the Arlington Fire Department and share some equipment and service areas.

The Arlington Heights name came about because that’s what people called Fire Station 49 along 228th Street NE, Bates said.

“We’ve just slowly been coming away from that,” he said.

Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com.