Fire district seeks bond for fire hall

Voters in the Sisters-Camp Sherman Rural Fire Protection District will be asked to approve a $2.5 million general obligation bond on next fall's November 7 ballot. Proceeds of the bond will be used to fund new construction and renovation of the fire hall at 301 S. Elm St. in Sisters, according to the district board of directors.

The decision to place the bond election before voters was made by a unanimous vote of the fire district's board of directors, at their July 18 meeting. A district property owner's annual estimated cost for the bond is 24.5 cents per $1,000 of their property's assessed tax value.

That amounts to $73.50 for a $300,000 home

If approved by the voters, the new construction and renovation of the current fire hall will incorporate about 21,864 square feet, providing space for additional emergency personnel; living and sleping quarters for on-duty firefighters, additional training and office space and equipment and emergency vehicle storage. Construction would start next spring.

"The current facility is 26 years old, outdated and does not meet standards for a district like ours," Fire Chief Taylor Robertson said. "It was built for a volunteer work force and now we have both a career crew and an expanded volunteer force. Since then, the district's population has grown, the valuation we protect has increased, and our number of responses has grown."

Over 85 percent of their responses are for medical aid, Robertson added.

Some of the features of the proposed remodeling include the addition of two more parking bays for vehicles, replacement of the old residence with improved eating and sleeping facilities for on-duty personnel, a large training facility, and separation of the fire personnel part of the hall from the part visited and used by the public, Robertson explained.

"Right now, we are storing vehicles outdoors, our on-duty crews are staying in the old house next door which slows their response, and we want to keep and improve our community room as a service, but separate it from where our personnel work and eat," he said.

The exterior plans have been approved and refinements are being worked out for the interiors, Robertson said. "That decision should come very quickly," he added.

As part of the remodeling preparation, the City of Sisters Public Works Department will leave the west part of the city block where the fire hall is and be relocated to the water treatment location south of town.

The recycling station will be moved from that same area to land owned by the first district in the Sisters Industrial Park.

Public information meetings will be held to present the building committee's plan. For additional information, contact Fire Chief Tay Robertson at 549-0771.