FFPD November meeting
The Falcon Fire Protection District held its monthly board meeting Nov. 19 at the Falcon Fire Administration Building on 7030 Old Meridian Road. Joan Fritsche, attorney; Tom Kerby, vice president; Ray Hawkins, treasurer; James Reid, president; Dan Kupferer, assistant secretary; Steve Podoll, secretary; Trent Harwig, chief, attended.
October minutes
The board approved the October minutes.
Correspondence
The district received a request from Circle K to place a groundwater monitoring well on district property near station No. 3 per state requirements because of a prior leak. An agreement will be drafted for review at the next meeting.
Mountain View Electric Association check presentation
Chief Jon Webb presented a $2,500 grant from MVEA through their Operation Round Up program to purchase ballistic gear for the department. Operation Round Up is a program where MVEA customers round up their bills to the nearest dollar. Since its inception in 2000, the fund has raised $3.1 million toward various causes, including helping community members in need.
Badging ceremony
Chief Harwig presented firefighter Fernando Hernandez with his badge.
Pension board meeting
The minutes from Nov. 20, 2024, were approved. Corey Galicia was appointed to the volunteer trustee vacancy. Harwig reviewed the third-quarter report for 2025. Currently the fund, which supports volunteer firefighters with at least 20 years of service, is projected to end with a balance near the same as the beginning of the year; thus, it is in good standing. Harwig presented the actuarial study that showed the required pension funding needed to increase the current pension from $700 a month up to $790 in $30 increments. Harwig did not anticipate future property tax laws and limits would affect funding of the pension plan, especially with the expected life expectancy of remaining members continuing to decline. The board unanimously agreed to an increase to $760, which would be adequately funded with the current budget, without increasing district contributions to the fund because of the current state matching program.
Treasurer’s report
Harwig presented the numbers through October 2025, representing 83.3% of the fiscal year.
The general fund was at 100% of anticipated revenues. Total expenses were at 75% of expected.
The ambulance transport fund was listed on the report as 89% of the expected revenues, which included the state EMS Medicaid supplemental reimbursement. Total expenses were at 73% of expected.
The capital project fund had received 76% of expected revenues. Total expenses were at 25% of expected because of an expected rollover of expenses to next year. Harwig said he planned to make the $1.5 million lease purchase agreement in mid-December.
The rural water fund had no new activity.
The board unanimously passed the report.
Staff reports
Deputy Chief Jeff Petersma presented the operations report.
There were 354 total calls in September — 3,264 for the year, with 2,620 belonging to the district. The district is currently projected to have 226 more calls this year compared to last. The average response times across all districts remained stable.
Webb presented the EMS report. In October, there were 207 calls with an average cash per trip of $926.84. Year to date shows 1,189 transports with a cash per trip of $895.64. The 24-month totals showed collections of $2.2 million with a cash per trip of $660.54; a Medicaid supplement increased this to $2.5 million at $751.86
Lt. Curtis Kauffman presented the fire prevention report. In October, there were 25 building inspections, 33 follow-up inspections, 11 partial/rough/fire finals, three pre-construction meetings and nine electronic development application reviews.
2021 IFC adoption with local amendments
Harwig said the district will post the proposed amendments for public comment along with the updated international fire code. Kauffman said there are local district amendments involving lithium-ion batteries, home vehicle charging stations and legal grow houses. The district plans to implement this by June 30 of 2026.
Wildlife Urban Interface Resiliency Code
The board discussed how the new code creating an unfunded mandate, which poses potential issues for the local community, given the current lack of personnel to perform this, is set to be adopted March 2026 and enforced beginning July 2026. Harwig said while Pikes Peak Regional Building would be a logical department to review and inspect buildings for these new measures, they have declined to do so, which leaves this mandate to individual fire districts, many of which lack the additional funds to do so because of city budget issues. Kauffman said if the district does not have the funds to comply with the new measures by either hiring additional personnel to review building plans or doing it themselves, then this would technically fall back onto the state’s Division of Fire Protection and Control, which currently lacks adequate funds to enforce the measures.
Stay connected with the Falcon Fire Protection District
- Website: http://www.falconfirepd.org
- Facebook: Falcon Fire Department
- Twitter: @FalconFireDept
- NextDoor.com
