OCN

Volunteers reporting on community issues in Monument, Palmer Lake, and the surrounding Tri-Lakes area

OCN > 2407 > Black Forest Fire/Rescue Protection District, June 19 – Impact fee study discussed; additional funding received

Black Forest Fire/Rescue Protection District, June 19 – Impact fee study discussed; additional funding received

By Natalie Barszcz

At the Black Forest Fire Rescue Protection District (BFFRPD) meeting on June 19, the board received advice about implementing impact fees and heard the district had received the anticipated funding from the state. The board heard about the district’s wildland team deployment status and approved a proposal from Lexipol to develop the district’s policy manual. The board held an executive session to discuss negotiations regarding the district’s ambulance service.

Director James Abendschan was excused.

Special District Emergency Services funding

District counsel Linda Glesne joined the meeting via Zoom and advised the board on several changes in the state Legislature that allows Special District Emergency Services to increase funding. See www.ocn.me/v24n6.htm#bffrpd.

Glesne said the following:

  • The state Legislature passed SB24-194 allowing special districts that are not under the jurisdiction of another political body to develop impact fees.
  • The bill also allows for the creation of a sales tax within the district subject to voter approval.
  • The impact fee portion will need to be underpinned by a study demonstrating the need to establish impact fees for the operation of the district.
  • Specific language within the bill mandates a rational basis for adopting a fee that should be no greater than necessary.
  • Discretion should be in play, and the study should focus on a cap or ceiling and assess reasonable anticipated growth.
  • The impact fees can only be assessed for capital facilities, equipment, and apparatus wear and tear.

Chair Nate Dowden said the board had no appetite for collecting sales tax and asked if the Legislature limits the use of impact fees, noting the stipulation that fees cannot be used for additional staffing. Hypothetically, a development could necessitate a new station which would cost the most, and the fees would cover the construction but not any additional staffing, he said.

Glesne said that before adopting an impact fee, the study would look at the district’s projected growth overall and not just one development. The district can already provide service to multi-story buildings, but the study will address the latter not the former. The study will assess how much impact the growth will have on the fire district. Glesne also said:

  • The board should consider the impact fee and implement it Jan. 1, 2025, with a view to the future and an anticipated growth model.
  • The impact fees cannot be collected for any development already in the construction phase, and fees cannot be collected until after Aug. 7, 2024.
  • The impact fees will be applied upon construction activity when the building permit is approved, and the fee collected will be distributed to the district.
  • Any existing residence or commercial property that changes its footprint above a set square footage would also be assessed an impact fee.
  • The board will establish the fee and additional square-footage limits for existing properties and uniformly apply the fees.
  • The board can revisit the impact fee scale in the future but cannot charge fees on a case-by-case basis.
  • The bill allows fee waivers only for low-income and affordable housing units.

Glesne advised the board to begin pursuing the study and have all its “ducks in a row” ready to adopt the impact fees after Aug. 7. She suggested the board budget at least $20,000 and probably more for the study. Glesne added that a couple of completed impact fee studies with a skeleton request for proposal (RFP) would be forwarded to the board.

Treasurer Jack Hinton said he thought the study would likely be in the range of about $50,000 and it would be hard to appropriate funding for the study until the district receives the bids.

District receives state funding

Fire Chief PJ Langmaid said the day after the May board meeting the reimbursements for SB-23B-001 and SB-22-238 were deposited into the district’s bank account. The funds were allocated via the El Paso County Assessor’s Office with the property tax revenue in April. The additional funding is available for the board to move forward with the Lexipol policy manual development and conduct the impact fee study, he said.

Background: During the budget process in 2023, the district expected to incur lost tax revenue in 2024 of about $373,301, after Proposition HH failed on the November ballot and the state Legislature held a late November 2023 “special session” that resulted in a reduction in property taxes that took away tax dollars from special districts. See www.ocn.me/v23n11.htm#bffrpd. The state promised to reimburse fire district revenue losses, and the district received the following reimbursements:

  • $264,429 for SB-23B-001.
  • $213,440 for SB-22-238.

The state gave back more than anticipated for a total of $477,876, just over $100,000 in additional revenue.

Note: The Board of Directors adopted 14.951 mills for 2024, approving $4.969 million for the budget. The 2024 budget will require amending to reflect the additional funds received.

Wildland fire team deployments

Langmaid said the district was not deployed (at the time of the meeting) and it was uncertain if district would be needed in New Mexico due to torrential rains in mid-June, but the district is available to deploy with the Type 6 brush truck if needed. The wildland team would have deployed to California, but the Type 3 engine is not available due to a significant number of cracks in the aluminum body and mounts. District Mechanic Gavin Smith evaluated the engine and advised against deploying the Type 3 due to the cracks and risk to the engine. Deputy Chief of Operations Chris Piepenburg and Smith have a plan to retrofit the Type 3 cab and chassis, allowing the apparatus to remain in service within the district and avoid the cost of replacing the apparatus.

Hinton said aluminum is fixable and he would like to see the damage.

Piepenburg said a new rear box (pump and tank) would typically be about $250,000, but the plan is to accomplish the retrofit for about $125,000.

Langmaid said he agrees with the retrofit, but the purchase will be dependent on the revenue generated by the wildland team deploying with the Type 6 brush truck in 2024.

Hinton said it is a problem if the wildland team cannot deploy and make money to pay for apparatus repairs.

Piepenburg said the Type 6 brush truck will eventually be deployed, but the requests from California are for a wildland team with a Type 3 engine only.

Lexipol proposal

Glesne provided advice to the board after reviewing the Lexipol contract and said the district’s right to terminate the contract will not be before the end of 2025. The board should allocate revenue to cover the year-and-a-half contract, she said. The contract will need to be corrected to renew Jan. 1, 2026 and not July when the pro-rated half year begins. The contract has limited indemnity, but that is not uncommon in IT contracts. The board could ask for that to be removed, but Lexipol may not be willing to make the change because it is not offering a lot. A lot of agencies are using Lexipol, and the scenario of a lawsuit is unlikely to occur. Lexipol provides a quality product and a warranty that states it is following all of the appropriate laws of the jurisdiction and U.S. laws, living up to the standard of professional service providers, said Glesne.

Hinton voiced concern over Lexipol removing the policy manual if the district decided not to renew the contract.

Glesne said the online portal would close and the district would need to download the policy manual before terminating the contract and make the necessary changes to the content before re-adopting the policies. The policies would be for internal purposes only, she said.

Dowden said the document may only be online and unavailable to print.

Vice Chair Kiersten Tarvainen requested clarification on the right to retain the policies produced for the district during the contract.

The board approved the Lexipol policy manual development contingent on the items that needed clarification or amending and authorized Langmaid to execute or nominate a designee in his absence.

Financial report

Hinton said that as of May 31, the district had about $2.7 million in the General Operations Fund and a combined total of about $3.654 million (includes reserve funds, deployment operations, and TABOR). The district received about $250,775 in county taxes and $337,000 in wildland deployment revenue. The annual payment of $45,000 was made for the 2022 Pierce Enforcer 4395 engine. The district’s total expenses year to date are about $2.4 million. The district is at 40% of the anticipated budgeted expenses and 1.66% below the projected expense budget, he said.

The board accepted the financial report as presented, 4-0.

Langmaid said the only notable expense was $9,000 to Hoelting & Sons for the 2023 audit.

Chief’s report

Langmaid said:

  • He had been invited to speak at 2nd Battalion (General Support), 4th Aviation Regiment at Fort Carson.
  • The board received two concrete proposals for review and discussion at the July meeting, approval in August with pouring of concrete in September.
  • Staff completed about 2,323 training hours in May.
  • The district continued EMS and fire training with Monument Fire District (MFD).
  • The district responded to a small structure fire on Highway 83 with MFD.
  • The fire danger signs around the district are checked daily and updated when needed as fire conditions change.

Fireworks concerns

Tarvainen asked about the district’s plans for the Fourth of July fire danger change in operations coverage.

Piepenburg said that depending on the weather conditions that are forecasted to be hot and dry over the next few weeks, extra precautions and upstaffing will likely be made on and around the Fourth of July holiday, as residents set off more fireworks than usual and the fire danger challenges become greater; it is always a dangerous day.

Langmaid said the big challenge is due to fireworks not being illegal in the county. State law only requires an evaluation one week before announcing any fireworks ban for the Fourth of July. A significant issue occurred July 4, 2022 in Black Forest when about 50 to 100 mortars were launched at a property and law enforcement almost brought in an explosive ordinance disposal team, he said.

Executive session

The board moved into executive session at 8:34 p.m. pursuant to Colorado Revised Statute 24-6-402(4), (e) to determine positions relevant to matters that may be subject to negotiations regarding the district’s ambulance service.

After the meeting, Logistics Officer Rachel Dunn confirmed that no action was taken when the board returned to the regular meeting and then promptly adjourned at 9:03 p.m.

**********

Meetings are usually held on the third Wednesday of the month at Station 1, 11445 Teachout Road, Colorado Springs. Meetings are open to the public in person or via Zoom. The next regular meeting is scheduled for July 17 at 7 p.m. For joining instructions, updates, agendas, minutes, and reports, visit bffire.org or contact the Administrative Office at admin@bffire.org or call 719-495-4300.

Natalie Barszcz can be reached at nataliebarszcz@ocn.me.

Other Black Forest Fire/Rescue Protection District articles