A fight over fire response in South County has sparked threats of service disruptions and put firefighter jobs in flux.
Citing years of financial struggle and fragmented emergency response, the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors unanimously voted Jan. 14 to begin dissolving the fiscally insolvent South County Fire District. The decision will end an $8 million annual contract with Cal Fire and switch to in-house county firefighters to cover the area — possibly requiring construction of a new station. Cal Fire serves approximately 289 square miles of unincorporated area between Morgan Hill, Gilroy and unincorporated San Martin.
The union representing South County’s Cal Fire employees has come out swinging against the decision. It’s claiming the move could displace 30 of its firefighters — forcing them to move from their homes in the area and work elsewhere — on the heels of catastrophic blazes burning through the Los Angeles area this month.
“We’re not happy. Our guys are bracing to be displaced or move far away from their current work locations over something that we felt the board did for political reasons and political reasons only,” Tim Edwards, president of the union representing Cal Fire’s South County firefighters, told San José Spotlight.
As a result of the fighting, Cal Fire could also end a separate contract to keep a fire season station along Pacheco Pass open year-round. While Cal Fire still owns a station in Morgan Hill — a city which, along with Gilroy, has its own fire department with three stations each — Edwards warns the county could be less of a priority during major fires in other parts of the state.
“Now that we have no contract to respond to medical, traffic collisions in that area, those engines will be the first to go to these big fires because their first priority will be the state mission,” Edwards said.
Steven Blythe, assistant chief of Cal Fire’s Santa Clara County unit, declined to comment on the board’s vote last week. He also declined to comment on Cal Fire’s position on continuing the contract for the Pacheco Pass station.
County officials — who asked not to be named so they could speak freely — called the threat over Pacheco Pass egregious, but insist on having a backup plan if Cal Fire chooses not to continue the station contract. Santa Clara County has a contract to use the station year-round, which is owned by Cal Fire and located in Hollister in neighboring San Benito County, which would otherwise be closed during the non-fire season. One backup plan being considered by county officials would be to park a fire truck near Casa de Fruta, just up the road from the station, which wouldn’t be ideal but would be more cost effective.
Whether or not the Pacheco Pass contract remains will depend on negotiations between the county and state fire department.
“We’ll still be there, don’t get me wrong. Cal Fire is going to respond to a major wild land fire because that’s what we do — we’re the state of California’s fire department,” Edwards told San José Spotlight. “But marks my words, once the county takes full control of that area, it’s going to cost way more to run fire protection in that area.”
County leaders said they plan on maintaining the same number of firefighters in the area.
County Executive James Williams said dissolving the South County fire district will enhance fire protection amid years of scrutiny over its dwindling revenues. The fire district’s bleak outlook stems from its reliance on local property tax revenue, which consistently underperforms because agricultural land is taxed on income generated by the land, rather than on potential market value.
Williams also said the move allows for a fully consolidated 911 center.
“There’s going to be a holistic dispatching from county communications. Today the dispatching is fragmented — meaning the law enforcement and ambulance dispatch is handled by county communications, but fire is separate,” Williams told San José Spotlight.
He added county fire offers services Cal Fire doesn’t, such as a Level 1 hazmat team that can respond to minor hazardous incidents.
Some residents led by South County Supervisor Sylvia Arenas lauded the move toward a more sustainable and reliable service. They cited the area’s aging fire engines and deteriorating stations. In letters to supervisors this month, other residents in San Martin expressed hesitance, still emotionally raw over the recent fires in Southern California.
“There are still more questions than answers at this point. However, when it comes to the potential impacts to the 30 firefighters, we are hoping the impacts are minimal,” Morgan Hill Mayor Mark Turner told San José Spotlight. “There may be opportunities to absorb some of those firefighters into local positions including Morgan Hill.”
Contact Brandon Pho at [email protected] or @brandonphooo on X.
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