Meeting to Discuss the Formation of a Fire District in Salmon Creek This Saturday

View from Salmon Creek school showing Bear Buttes in the background and SCVFD’s vehicles in the middle ground.

On Saturday, February 19, at noon, the Salmon Creek Fire Department is holding a meeting about the formation of a fire district in that area.

“This is going to allow us to have a guaranteed source of income that allows us to pay our insurance plus basic operating costs,” said Dan Gribi, chief of the Salmon Creek Fire Department. “We will still be able to do our other fundraising to buy equipment.”

A letter sent out by the fire department estimates that the tax could range from $35 to $50 per year per parcel.  “We are proposing to design the tax so that landowners with multiple contiguous undeveloped parcels would have the opportunity to lump them together so they are taxed as one parcel,” the letter states.

Gribi said that becoming a fire district will “open up more grant opportunities.” Beyond that he points out that residents of the area are losing fire insurance and becoming a fire district will encourage insurance companies to provide options for this area. “[Residents] are having their insurance cancelled,” Gribi told us. “If we form a fire district, it could possibly increase [residents’] ability to get fire insurance.”

Gribi said that the meeting will discuss the possible options for a response area.

The steps through the process will take a little over a year.
Below are the major steps:

1. First the decision will be made by next Monday on the area that will be included in the response area? See map for the options.
2. Then a Notice of Intent to circulate the petition will be posted during the rest of this month.
3. In March, the petition will be circulated and will need to get 25% of registered voters in this area and signatures will be gathered to bring this to a vote.
4.  Then, if enough people sign, it will go through the process to be put on the ballot in March of 2023.

Cybelle Immitt and John Miller, from Humboldt County and Collette Metz, from Humboldt County Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) will be at the meeting on Saturday to answer questions.

In addition to discussing the formation of the district, Gribi says that there will be discussion of fire-wise landscaping and becoming a recognized fire-wise community.

And depending on availability, there may be discussion of the fuel reduction and fire break going in on the top of the north ridge of Salmon Creek–the Chapman and Wallen Ranch on Sunnyside. About $1.5 million Some money will go to local workers to reduce fuels in that area of Salmon Creek to try and stop fire coming from the north and east like the 2003 Canoe Fire tried to do.

Gribi urges all Salmon Creek residents to attend on Saturday and help clarify a vision for the future of fire defense in the area.