The Falcon Fire Protection District Board of Directors met March 18 with all board members present, as well as a deputy from the El Paso County Sheriffs Office and the district’s attorney, Dino Ross.Exclusion requestRepresenting homeowners in FFPD’s district 5, Donna Baylor asked the board about the process for exclusion from the Falcon fire district.With a new fire station under construction at the intersection of Hodgen Road and Black Forest Road by the Black Forest Fire and Rescue District, Baylor said the homeowners might get a better Insurance Services Office rating if their properties were in the Black Forest district.Falcon fire chief Trent Harwig said the automatic mutual agreement between the two districts already gives the area an ISO rating of six. He offered to give the homeowners a copy of the agreement so they can notify their insurance companies and negotiate lower homeowners’ insurance rates.Board president Mike Collins said, if that doesn’t work, the homeowners should shop around for another insurance company. “I shopped around and found a company that recognizes the auto-aid agreement and saved a lot,” Collins said.The mill levy for the Black Forest district is higher than the Falcon district, so if the homeowners proceed with their exclusion request, to avoid checker boarding, 100 percent of the property owners in a well-defined area would need to sign a petition, Harwig said.New training programThe board voted to enter into a contract not to exceed $6,500 with ProSkills, a Missouri-based leadership and management training company.Collins said he also researched Memorial Hospital and the Center for Creative Leadership, but found the recommendations from fire districts that received training from ProSkills compelling.ProSkills’ founder, Donna Forgy, will spend five days conducting an on-site survey of the fire department and then prepare a training program.Firefighter pensions at risk?Collins said he had heard that the Fire and Police Pension Association of Colorado, to which the Falcon fire district pays retirement premiums, had money invested with Bernie Madoff, the man behind the $50 billion Ponzi scheme.In January, The Wall Street Journal reported that the “FPPA had, until six months ago, $60 million invested in Fairfield Greenwich Group, a fund of hedge funds that in turn had about half its $14 billion with Mr. Madoff. Although the FPPA divested that investment before the Madoff scandal erupted, a twist in bankruptcy laws could force it to return funds used by Mr. Madoff’s alleged scheme.”The FFPA Web site, www.fppaco.org, does not acknowledge the Madoff investment, but states, “If you are a retired defined benefit plan member … your benefits are fully vested and cannot be reduced.”
