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OCN > 2504 > Monument Fire District, Feb. 26 and March 26 – Long-term goals revealed

Monument Fire District, Feb. 26 and March 26 – Long-term goals revealed

By Natalie Barszcz

At the Tri-Lakes Monument Fire Protection District dba Monument Fire District (MFD) meeting on Feb. 26, the board approved a petition of real property inclusion in the eastern portion of the district, received an update on impact fees, adopted the Community Risk Assessment (CRA) and Standards of Cover (SOC), and awarded funds for the northside completion of Station 4 and the Mitchell Avenue rental property remodel projects. The “Chief’s Coin” was presented to two citizens for a life-saving event. The board held an executive session to review and discuss the fire chief’s contract.

A strategic workshop was held on March 15 to discuss long-term goals for the district.

At the March 26 meeting, the board discussed an $18 million lease/purchase agreement to construct the rebuild of Station 3 and approved $85,000 in additional funding for the Station 2 remodel. The board director election was canceled, and the board heard that Front Range Fire Apparatus will not build at Station 1. The board held an executive session to discuss personnel matters involving the fire chief contract, to instruct a negotiator, and to develop a strategy for negotiating a possible agreement with the Black Forest Fire Rescue Protection District (BFFRPD).

Director Randall Estes was excused on Feb. 26.

Directors Mark Gunderman, John Hildebrandt, and Tom Kelly attended the March 15 workshop.

Directors Jason Buckingham and Mike Smaldino were excused on March 26.

Petition for inclusion

At the Feb. 26 meeting, the board held a public hearing for the inclusion of 106.6 acres of real property off Gambler Place, Colorado Springs, owned by Thaddeus J. Jarosz, to be developed into 10 single-family dwellings that will be included into the district for services. Hearing no public comments for or against, the board approved Resolution 2025-03 in a 6-0 vote, granting a petition for the inclusion of real property within the district.

Impact fees

Division Chief of Community Risk Reduction Jonathan Bradley said the district engaged BBC Research and Consulting to complete another impact fee study for about $12,000 to look at updating the impact fees they recommended 10 years ago, which have been set at $771 since 2016. State law changed in 2024 to allow the collection of impact fees to include unincorporated El Paso County without the consent of a municipal government. The county had opposed the district’s collection of impact fees outside of the town limits in the past. The final report has been sent to the Housing and Building Association, and a meeting will be set to discuss the significant increase in fees with the builders. The impact fee increase will be recommended to the board for adoption, with implementation in 2026 after the discussion with the builders, said Bradley.

Community Risk Assessment and Standards of Cover

Fire Chief Andy Kovacs said the districtwide agency accreditation-seeking process was about 95% complete, and he requested the board approve Resolution 2025-04, adopting the 2025 Monument Fire District Community Risk Assessment (CRA) and Standards of Cover (SOC). The peer assessors will begin reading the self-assessments created by different department managers between May 11 and 15. The peer assessment will verify and validate the managers’ answers before the district requests accreditation to the Center for Public Safety Excellence commission in August.

The board approved the CRA and SOC for 2025 in a 6-0 vote.

Fire Station 4 northside remodel completion

The board awarded Flintco LLC the Station 4 (Gleneagle Drive) northside remodel completion for a sum not to exceed $157,067. Flintco completed southside remodel at Station 4 in 2024 for about $1 million. See https://wp.ocn.me/v24n7mfd/.

Mitchell property remodel project

The board awarded the Mitchell Avenue rental property remodel project contract to Flintco for a sum not to exceed the budgeted amount of $500,000. See https://wp.ocn.me/v25n1mfd/.

Recognition

Kovacs presented the “Chief’s Coin” to Jenna Honeycutt for her quick response that helped save her father’s life on Dec. 4. A second coin and letter of commendation written by the attending firefighters and paramedics was presented to the assisting dispatcher at the El Paso County dispatch office on Feb. 12 for her ability to coach Jenna during the cardiac arrest.

Community risk reduction efforts

Bradley said the Monument Professional Firefighters Local 4319 would assist the residents during the chipping season. Multiple day events would not be available during the 2025 chipping program to enable double crews to assist in two communities during some weekends and conduct half-day events. The schedule will allow for single alternate crews to maintain the chipper. The sign-up began on March 15 and the calendar has 25 homeowners associations lined up for “community chipping events” scheduled to begin May 17 this year.

Executive session

The Board of Directors moved into an executive session at 6:10 p.m. pursuant to Colorado Revised Statutes Section 24-6-402(4)(f), to review and discuss the fire chief contract.

When the board returned to the regular meeting at 6:58 p.m., no action was taken and the Feb. 26 meeting adjourned at 7 p.m.

Long-term planning

The minutes of the workshop held on March 15 stated Kovacs will review the district’s long-term fiscal sustainability, focusing on the impact of growth in the Monument area. Although several department managers suggested additional staffing positions during the workshop presentations, he will adopt a conservative approach to staffing since property tax revenue could fluctuate and cause an impact to overall revenue. Revenue sources will be reviewed to assess the possible need to implement higher impact fees, evaluate ambulance transport rates, increase the mill levy, and possibly the addition of a sales tax.

Note: Implementing a sales tax would require approval from the eligible voting residents of the Town of Monument (TOM) (about 60% of the voters reside east of Monument Marketplace in the area known as Jackson Creek).

Kovacs also summarized the district’s involvement with Black Forest Fire Rescue Protection District (BFFRPD) and said there are no current merger talks, and should that be a question in the future he would evaluate the decision based on whether it would be a good fit. The cultures of both departments are very different, and the district would need to evaluate long-term financial sustainability, he said.

Note: BFFRPD has been exploring the possibility of alternative fire service delivery options over the past several months. See https://wp.ocn.me/v25n2bffrpd/. For updates, visit www.bffire.org. The topic was discussed in executive session at the March 26 meeting.

2025 board director election

At the March 26 meeting, Kovacs said the district election that was scheduled for May 6 to fill five board director positions had been canceled due to a lack of additional candidates. The directors will hold the following terms:

  • Duane Garrett two-year term
  • Gunderman four-year term
  • Hildebrandt four-year term
  • Kelly two-year term
  • Cody Peterson four-year term

Note: Peterson is a resident of the former Donald Wescott Fire Protection District and will be sworn into the seat to be vacated by Smaldino in May. All board positions will then be occupied by unincorporated El Paso County residents. The district does not maintain term limitations for board directors.

Kovacs said he was meeting regularly with Monument interim Town Manager Madeline VanDenHoek to share resources and “do business better” with the town and partner on projects and initiatives.

Financial update

Treasurer Kelly said the overall revenue year to date as of Feb. 28 was $668,554 and is about 2.7% of the projected 2025 income projected annual revenue of about $24.2 million. Overall expenses year to date were $3.09 million and about 16.4% of the projected expense budget set at about $18.7 million. The district had about $15.244 million in checking/savings with about $8.5 million in the General Operations Fund, said Kelly.

Station 3 financing

Tim David, president of Centennial National Finance Group, presented the board with three financing options for an $18 million lease/purchase agreement for the construction of the Station 3 rebuild.

The board favored a 20-year loan but after an extensive discussion, the board requested David also provide three construction loan proposals for comparison before any decision could be made.

David said it was unlikely that the interest for the construction loans would be less than the three lease/purchase proposals presented, and banks will not lend $18 million without collateral.

Bumgarner said the rebuild of Station 3 is expected to cost about $20.249 million with $3 million already allocated in the 2025 budget. The district has spent about $188,000 this year for costs associated with architects, project management, and site and plan approvals. The land purchase phase is approaching, and after the board approves the $18 million loan the district can begin using the loan to pay expenses related to the rebuild. The construction phase is expected to take about a year to complete.

Kovacs said the district expects to receive $499,000 for the existing Station 3 at 1855 Woodmoor Drive when it is sold to Woodmoor Water and Sanitation District, said Kovacs.

Station 2 remodel additional funding

Division Chief of Administration Jamey Bumgarner requested the board consider additional funding for the Station 2 remodel for Brian Pierce Roofing LLC to replace the original leaking flat roof that was requiring about $10,000-$15,000 in repairs. The cost is estimated to be about $71,000-$74,000 for the replacement with a 20-year warranty, and the station also requires some additional interior paint work for about $10,000, said Bumgarner.

Kovacs said the additional funds for the remodel would be sourced from capital expenditure funding, and some items allocated in the budget expenditure would not be purchased in 2025.

The board approved up to $85,000 for the additions.

Station 1 Training Center update

Bumgarner said OZ Architects had delivered the cost to grade the Station 1 property, and the site design group needs to meet to discuss options. Front Range Fire Apparatus no longer wants to purchase part of the Station 1 land due to the high cost of grading the property. The district is helping Front Range Fire Apparatus find another site in Monument, said Bumgarner.

Executive session

The board moved into an executive session at 6:02 p.m. pursuant to Colorado Revised Statutes Section 24-6-402(4)(f), to discuss personnel matters involving the fire chief contract.

The board also held an executive session pursuant to Colorado Revised Statutes Section 24-6-402(4)(e), instructing a negotiator, and developing a strategy for negotiating a possible agreement with the BFFRPD.

Kovacs confirmed to this reporter that when the board returned to the regular session, the board took action to renew the fire chief’s contract in a 5-0 vote.

The meeting adjourned at 7:14 p.m.

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Meetings are usually held on the fourth Wednesday every month. The next regular meeting is scheduled for April 23 at 4:30 p.m. at Station 1, 18650 Highway 105. For Microsoft Teams virtual joining instructions, agendas, minutes, and updates, visit www.monumentfire.org or contact Director of Administration Jennifer Martin at 719-484-9011.

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

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