The below article is courtesy of the April 6, 2012 edition of the Statesman Journal. (Click here for original Statesman Journal article)

Officials of Marion County Fire District No. 1 announced Friday that they have reached an agreement with its union that includes wage freezes, voluntary demotions and a reorganization of employees that will save more than $260,000 per year.

Two administrative staff have been laid off and two tenured staff, Battalion Chief Kim Batchelor and mechanic Jason Fast, took voluntary retirements.

All employees have agreed to take a 2.5 percent wage reduction, fire district board president Randy Franke said.

In addition, some employees eligible for promotion will take pay freezes while others will take demotions to lower positions. Chief Kevin Henson said new employee classifications had been created as part of the reorganization effort.

In all, three captains have been demoted to lieutenants, 14 firefighter-engineers were demoted to firefighters and a paramedic position was created. The duties of laid off and retired personnel will be redistributed to the remaining force, Franke said.

Franke said the aim of the reorganization was to minimize service reductions to its service area. It serves unincorporated areas of east Salem, the Clear Lake …

The below editorial, written by Keizertimes editor Lyndon Zaitz, supports the MCFD#1 Board position that moving on toward more collabortive relationships is the future of the fire service:

(Click here to see editorial as posted on the Keizertimes website)

“Now that the two measures on Tuesday’s special election ballot regarding Keizer Fire’s annexation of Clear Lake have been decisively defeated, it is time to move on.

But, what’s next?

First, all three public bodies involved in this issue need to let it be, mend fences and repair the damage wrought by the campaign.

The city of Keizer needs to repair fences with the Marion County Fire District including its management and fire fighters. Mayor Lore Christopher is on record saying she did not trust the management of Marion County Fire.  We understand her statements were political, she was watching out for her city. Keizer has no bigger cheerleader than its mayor, but to publicly disparage another public body and call into question their validity and credibility does neither her nor the city of Keizer any favors.

In these times where every Oregon governmental jurisdiction is struggling with decreasing revenues and increasing expenses, they all need to work together. We …

On behalf of the Marion County Fire District #1 Board of Directors I want to thank our many supporters for their dedication, hard work and loyalty. I believe we prevailed in Tuesday’s election because, first, our volunteer firefighters at Clear Lake station 6 and throughout our district traditionally have done an outstanding job serving the communities in which they serve.  Next, the citizens of Clear Lake are happy with the service they receive, did their homework, and armed with the facts have spoken loud and clear to the reasons these measures should not pass.  And finally, the PAC was led by Keizer citizen, Mike Welter, who did an excellent job of getting the facts out to the voters of Keizer.

We deeply appreciate all the support we received from the Vineyards I Homeowners Association (including a $1,350 contribution), the Vineyards II Homeowners Association, the numerous Keizer citizens who put up lawn signs and wrote letters to the editor, and the many Keizer residents who contributed funds ranging from $20 to $100 for the campaign effort.

While MCFD#1 prevailed in this election, in reality there are no winners. Both Districts are facing tight budgets that will require difficult decisions in the days …

Marion County Fire District #1 has been protecting the residents of the Keizer area before Keizer was a city.  Our brave men and women have been on duty since 1941, protecting the property and people who now call Keizer home . Recently Lore Christopher, mayor of Keizer, has publicly stated that Clear Lake residents of Keizer are not afforded the same security and safety as the rest of Keizer.  Further, Ms. Christopher stated that the actions of Marion County Fire District #1 are reckless and frightening.   Please allow me to set the record straight.

The services provided by Marion County Fire District #1, Station 6, located in the Clear Lake neighborhood, are superior fire protection, education and emergency services.  Further, the Clear Lake neighborhood has the backing of the entire Marion County Fire District #1 force of assets.  It is a ridiculous and uneducated statement for anyone to make a claim that the Clear Lake area of Keizer receives inferior public safety services.

Many months ago the Keizer city council began a process to take land and money away from Marion County Fire District #1.  After several public hearings and overwhelming testimony from Clear Lake residents that NO change should …

The saga with the City of Keizer and the Keizer Fire District continues.  Voter pamphlets will begin to arrive in the mailboxes of Keizerites starting today.  The impact to you as a MCFD#1 resident of this vote for Marion County Fire District #1 (MCFD#1) is enormous.  If the City of Keizer and Keizer Fire District are successful in forcibly annexing this area, our ability to provide the same level of services to you will be diminished.  We’ve tried to not be alarming nor overstating but like all local governments, we had a tight budget to begin with.  We’ve tried to do more with less but if this measure passes we lose over $550,000 of operating funds each and every year, plus an undetermined amount of ambulance revenue.  In short, we will have to completely redesign our current service delivery deployment model.  What does that mean?  Simply put, if the measures are successful, we will immediately reconsider the current staffing of our ambulances and fire engines.

Of particular interest, the process that the City of Keizer and Keizer Fire District is using has NEVER been used in Oregon before.  We’re challenging the process through the courts but the judge may not …