The Falcon Fire Protection District held its regular board meeting Jan. 21. All board members were present; Joan Hathcock arrived late. Attorney Richard Shearer, legal counsel for the district, participated via conference call.Treasurerís reportFire chief Trent Harwig presented the final 2014 treasurerís report and said the district ended the year 1 percent under budget. The 2014 audit is scheduled for March.Final paymentThe final lease/purchase payment for Station 1 was made Jan. 15. Shearer said it should not take long to finalize the deed and other paperwork.Following the executive session at the end of the meeting, Kelly Starkman, director, credited Harwig and former director Phil Theodore with the early payoff. ìAs one of the only members of the board that was still sitting when this whole thing started, I want to give credit and thanks to both Trent Harwig and Phil Theodore for thinking outside of the box and saving the taxpayers a bond issue, and paying off an excellent fire station that this district needed desperately,î Starkman said. ìNow that weíve paid that station off, Iím very proud that it has happened the way it did. Ö Thatís a great way to proceed in the future.îBlack Forest Reserve cisternHarwig reported that the signed easement agreement for the cistern location has been received from the Black Forest Reserve homeowners association. He projects completion of the project in early spring barring weather complications.Station 4Hammers Construction has provided a preliminary drawing for Station 4 to establish a footprint for the lot.County open-burning ordinanceHarwig explained the new county open-burning ordinance. In response to concerns from Black Forest residents, the county commissioners approved an ordinance that tightens requirements for conducting open burning of slash piles. ìThe primary purpose of it was slash piles in the burn area,î Harwig said. Air quality permits issued by the county health department have always been required for slash pile burns. Under the new ordinance, those permit requests are now also being sent to the county fire marshalís office for an additional permit. Harwig said the ordinance does not apply to recreational or cooking fires that are no more than 3 feet by 3 feet in area and 2-feet high or less. However, those kinds of open fires are subject to county burn bans or restrictions.Starkman said burn permits can be obtained online, and there is no fee. The county does request photos of the burn piles to show proximity to structures.(See additional information about the new county ordinance in this monthís FFPD column.)
