Two cities join Fire District 1

The cities of Mountlake Terrace and Brier have each reached agreement with Snohomish County Fire District 1 for service over the next 20 years.

Mountlake Terrace’s agreement calls for paying $1.75 million to District 1 in 2005, while Brier will pay $695,000. Payments will be adjusted during the course of the contract based on the rate of inflation and the median compensation of comparable fire agencies, said District 1 Commissioner Jim Kenny.

The Mountlake Terrace City Council voted 5-2 Dec. 20 to approve the agreement, while the Brier City Council and District 1 Board of Commissioners each voted unanimously for approval on Dec. 21.

Mountlake Terrace has contracted with District 1 since March 2001 for its fire service, saving $380,000 each year versus running its own fire department, said city administrative services director Scott Hugill. Under the new agreement, the city will save more than $700,000 per year, Hugill said.

Brier will come near to breaking even compared to what it had been paying to Mountlake Terrace for fire service, said Mayor Gary Starks.

The 27 employees of the Mountlake Terrace Fire Department will become District 1 employees Jan. 1. During the interim agreement, city firefighters provided fire service to Mountlake Terrace and Brier while the department operated without a chief, said Scott Hugill, Terrace director of administrative services. Overtime shifts and paramedic services were covered by District 1, he said.

The city’s two fire stations, at City Hall and on 228th Street SW near the Brier border, will remain in city hands. The downtown station will be rebuilt or remodeled and the 228th Street station will eventually be closed when District 1 builds a new station near Brier’s north border, officials said. Fire trucks and equipment will become District 1 property, and the trucks will bear the Fire District 1 logo.

For District 1, the agreement adds to the district’s economies of scale, said Commissioner Jim Kenny. The district is the largest provider of fire service in Snohomish County, serving 150,000 residents in the southwestern part of the county.

“It allows us to provide better service to the fire district and also allows us to regionalize service in the south county area,” Kenny said.

In addition to closing the station at 228th, the district is considering closing the Hilltop station at 20510 Damson Road. between Bothell and Brier, Kenny said. The new station at the north end of Brier would allow the district to serve both areas from one central location for less money, he said.º