MADRAS, OR -- Jefferson County Fire and EMS is joining the list of taxing districts asking voters to approve more funding this year. Thursday evening, the fire board approved sending a $14.5 million bond to the May ballot. 

Fire Chief Jeff Blake tells KBND News, "This department has not done bond request for capital funding or capital improvements in 23 years. The last one was done in 1998. Those were used to buy the two fire trucks we have now, which are the two fire trucks that are our first responding fire trucks for this community." He says that's several years past when most agencies put an engine on reserve status. 

Blake also wants to remodel the Madras fire hall to accommodate a diverse workforce that’s now between 30% and 50% female, "This station was built in 1989 and it looks big from the outside. A lot of it is apparatus space, where we store all our equipment. We simply don’t have enough showers for our males; we certainly don’t have enough showers for our females, or just facilities and bathrooms." 

Also on the list of needs, "Remodel the Culver fire station, purchase new apparatus; purchase new ambulances because we’re running the wheels off of those things, especially with the consolidation of emergency medical services and the consolidation of the hospital." Chief Blake says his agency does a lot of transports from the Madras hospital to St. Charles Bend, and reimbursements for those rides have declined in recent years. And, according to the Chief, the permanent tax rate of $1.18 per $1,000 of assessed property value does not allow the agency to save money for big-ticket items. 

To help with building improvements, he's also asked the state legislature for $3.4 million in help, "Our total need, that I’m just looking at for the future of our organization over the next 15 years, is probably $17 million." He has a plan B if that ask is rejected. KBND asked if he’s considered a Plan C, if the state funding and bond fail? He answered, "I - I mean, I have. There’s possibly the ability of private financing or it’s grants. But those take a long time."

The request of voters is for 42-cents per $1,000 for the first five years. It would then increase to no more than 83-cents for the second five years. Blake says that would bring his district in line with the tax rates of other similarly sized fire  agencies.