Join us for discussions about Glade Park Fire becoming a Fire Protection District:
Saturday, June 7th at 10:00 AM
Wednesday, June 11th at 7:00 PM
Saturday, June 7th at 10:00 AM
Wednesday, June 11th at 7:00 PM
See the News section below for more information
* 550 mi² including the 183 mi² Dolores Triangle.
Glade Park occupies 11% of Mesa County.
The Glade Park Fire Department is not supported by your tax dollars. It is entirely supported through fundraising efforts and donations.
The department is staffed 100% by volunteers who donate hundreds of hours of time every year, training and responding to calls 24/7.
News
Come join the conversation at the fire station about the Glade Park Volunteer Fire Department transitioning into a more sustainable fire protection district. As our community grows and the demands on the volunteers increase, we face some real challenges. Things like maintaining dated equipment, ensuring everyone has the best training, and even just covering basic operational costs with donations and fundraising are becoming more and more difficult.
We want to talk about making an investment in our community, our safety, and protecting our property. A volunteer fire department is a grassroots, community-driven effort that relies on generosity and goodwill.
Challenges:
Unpredictable funding: Relying on fundraising means income can fluctuate significantly, making it hard to budget for major equipment purchases or long-term planning.
Volunteer recruitment and retention: It’s increasingly difficult to find and keep volunteers, especially with demanding training requirements and time commitments.
Aging equipment: Without stable funding, replacing outdated or worn-out apparatus and gear can be a constant struggle.
Limited resources: May struggle to provide the full range of modern fire and rescue services, including advanced medical response, specialized hazardous materials handling, or technical rescue.
Burnout: Volunteers can suffer from burnout due to the demands of their service alongside their personal lives.
A fire protection district elevates fire and emergency services to a formal, legally recognized, and sustainably funded public service.
Advantages:
Stable and dedicated funding: Allows for long-term planning, consistent equipment upgrades, and ongoing professional training.
Improved service levels: Can support better responses, more comprehensive services.
Potential for lower insurance rates: Better fire protection often leads to improved ISO (Insurance Services Office) ratings, which can result in lower homeowner insurance premiums.
Protect our property values: A strong fire department is a vital part of the community. It protects our homes, businesses, and natural spaces, which directly impacts our property values and overall quality of life.
Forming a fire protection district isn’t just about the fire department, it’s about making our entire community safer, more secure, and more resilient. It’s about ensuring that when an emergency strikes, we have the best possible resources available to protect our loved ones and our property.
We hope everyone out there has enjoyed Spring so far and is ready for the heat. It’s warming up fast as summer approaches, and the cheatgrass started curing even earlier this year, increasing wildfire potential with its flammability.
The winds and low relative humidity have dried things out fast – we’ve already had at least 5 Red Flag warning days in May, so it’s time to postpone any open burning until the winter.
The folks over at the Climate Prediction Center are telling us the extreme drought is likely to continue, so let’s be careful with any open flames or welding projects.
New 36,000 Gallon Cistern Completed
Increasing capacity to 56,000 gallons!
The Insurance Services Office (ISO) provides ratings on a scale of 1-10 to fire departments and insurance companies, reflecting a community’s preparedness level for fires. The best rating is an ISO score of 1. Factors influencing an ISO rating include: equipment capability, member training, apparatus maintenance and water supply, among others. Glade Park Fire meets many of the criteria: a fire engine that pumps 1,250 gallons per minute, member training hours logged, and two water tender trucks that are parked out of the elements.
Another important factor is water storage capacity. The cistern at the fire station holds 20,000 gallons, but in order to improve the ISO rating, the storage needed to be doubled.
All successful projects depend on talented craftsmen and reliable businesses. Glade Park Fire was fortunate enough to have two such businesses manage the recent cistern installation. JB Kroft Excavation (JB & Neil Kroft) and Grand Valley Quality Concrete (Mike Campbell & Crew). These owners are Glade Park residents going the extra mile to support the fire department and in turn the whole community.
Projects always require funding, and an opportunity to advance the timeline came thanks to the generous donation from a philanthropic ranching couple living on Glade Park. The fire department was a recipient of their gift that paved the way to this water storage goal.
JB & Neil Kroft and Mike Campbell excavated and formed the new 36,000 gallon concrete cistern. The cistern is a 27’x27’ box with 10 inch thick walls and a 25’x25’ concrete lid that is 8 inches thick. Many accolades go to these contractors for the excavation, forming, pouring and regrading. The project could not have been accomplished this year without their generosity, and on a timeline that allows Movies Under The Stars to begin June 9th. The water supply capacity is now 56,000 gallons and the ISO rating for residences within a five-mile radius of the fire station will be reassessed and lowered from 8.4 if all goes as expected. Those within a 10 mile radius should also see a reduction from their current number after reassessment by the ISO. The final ISO rating and how it translates to a homeowners’ individual insurance company premium is between the person and their company.
Many thanks to JB, Neil and Mike and the generous benefactors. Your generosity will benefit many in this beautiful community.
June 2023