The Oceano Community Services District (CSD) boardroom was full on Jan. 25. Residents were there to hear presentations from the Five Cities Fire Authority fire chief and general manager about Measure A-20.
Measure A-20, if passed, would maintain rapid response times for medical emergencies and fire protection services, provide 24/7 staffing and emergency services, and a third full-time firefighter for the Fire Authority, which serves Arroyo Grande, Grover Beach, and Oceano. The measure would also fund the Oceano CSD’s end of the Five Cities Fire joint powers agreement—an agreement of services paid for by Arroyo Grande, Grover Beach, and Oceano.
The $180 annual parcel tax, about $15 a month, would bring in roughly $422,000 a year. It’s subject to annual maximum increases capped at 2 percent.
During public comment, three individuals said they supported the idea of funding the service but asked if there was another way to pay for it. “We didn’t start by deciding we needed a tax plan, but there just isn’t any other place. That’s it. This is all we got,” district board Vice President Karen White said.
Oceano CSD General Manager Will Clemens said Oceano’s share of the Fire Authority cost is projected to go up to about $1.4 million. Currently, the district gets $1 million from property taxes to fund fire and emergency services.
In order for the measure to pass, it requires two-thirds of voters to approve it.
Arroyo Grande, Grover Beach, and Oceano approved an amendment to their joint powers agreement in June 2019 that established a backup plan if Oceano’s measure didn’t pass and it had to leave the agreement. If Measure A-20 fails, Oceano would cease to be a member of the Fire Authority on June 3, 2021. The amendment creates a pathway for the district’s resignation and a 16-month “wind down period” to distribute assets and payment liabilities.
Following the resignation, Clemens said, the CSD would have to look into other ways of providing the service: Oceano could try to re-establish an independent fire department reliant on volunteer and/or reserve firefighters, or future services would be determined by San Luis Obispo County.
He said the county recently released a cost estimate for staffing the existing the fire station in Oceano with Cal Fire personnel—approximately $1.6 million.
This article appears in Feb 6-13, 2020.
