The Board of Commissioners of King County Fire District 27 (Fall City) took action at a Special Meeting on December 14, 2018 to withdraw a ballot measure from the February 12, 2019 Special Election that proposed merging Districts 27 and 10, making the Fall City Fire Department part of Eastside Fire & Rescue.
According to an announcement, “The Commissioners were in agreement that it was important to take additional time to provide accurate and up to date information to the public about the ballot measure proposal. They will consider placing the proposed measure on the ballot for the April 23, 2019 Special Election.”
District 27 serves Fall City. District 10 includes unincorporated King County areas of Carnation, Issaquah, Sammamish and Renton and is currently served by Eastside Fire & Rescue (EF&R).
According to an earlier press release, a task force of elected officials – including fire department administrators, community members, and firefighters – had worked for over a year evaluating the benefits of moving forward with a consolidation of fire districts and the benefits to the Fall City community.
Proponents of the merger said 77% of District 27’s taxpayers would see a decrease, amounting to a $300,000 savings. With ballot measure approval, the district’s current Maintenance of Operation levy that funds the department would be replaced by a fire benefit charge. Additionally, all current Fall City Fire employees would retain their positions and the “Fall City” identity would remain on the fire station and trucks with a merger.
See our earlier full story on the proposed merger HERE.
