Letter: Why Vote NO on The Proposed Felton Fire District Benefit Assessment
The Fire District’s crisis has been caused by mismanagement.
- According to Interim Fire Chief Isaac Blum, the lack of leadership at the Board and Chief level from 2021 to 2024 led to “an almost complete crippling of services and district operations.”1
- The County’s Local Agency Formation Commission agrees. As noted in its report:
“Since [2021], FFPD has seen four different Fire Chiefs, Board member resignations, a reduction in the number of active volunteers, and the discontinuation of a two-year agreement with Ben Lomond Fire Protection District (BLFPD) for operational services after only six months in effect.”2
We do not need to abandon the volunteer model for fire service, which is far less costly and more financially sustainable over time.
- Boulder Creek, Ben Lomond and Zayante Fire Districts all have successful, well-functioning primarily volunteer-based fire departments, as did Felton until 2021.
- The other three SLVWD fire districts have personnel costs at 20% to 40% of what the Felton Fire District is proposing. Felton would have more paid staff than the other three districts combined.
- Interim Chief Blum has successfully reinstituted a volunteer-based system during the last two years while working part time and with no other paid staff.3
- Interim Chief Blum has stated that the system as currently structured is unstainable. However, his success (and the ongoing success of the other three SLV fire districts) demonstrates that the volunteer-based structure can be successful with sufficient paid-staff support.
The Fire District has provided inadequate, confusing, and often contradictory budgetary data to justify the Benefit Assessment, and its financial status cannot be determined based on documentation available to the public. Such information is critical for voters seeking to make an informed decision on the proposal.
- The proposed budget presented by Interim Chief Blum at the recent community meetings includes $1.45 million for staffing costs for the next 10 years, with no allowance of cost-of-living and merit increases.
- The Draft Budget on the district’s website includes substantial staffing cost increases over time, and the budgetary amounts in the two documents do not match.
- The proposed staffing levels are clearly unsustainable over time without increases in funding, presumably from another Benefit Assessment or parcel tax.
- In May 2026, the district advertised for the Chief and Captain positions with salary ranges that cannot be supported by the proposed budget except at the very lowest end of the advertised salary range.
- The budget for the current fiscal year includes $623,880 in staff costs, yet the district reports there are no staff members, with only Interim Chief Blum being paid part time as a contractor.
- The District has not had audited financials in over 3 years, and it does not provide actual costs by line item. It is therefore impossible to determine the current financial condition and liabilities of the district.
Contrary to the ballot statement for the Benefit Assessment, there are other options for preserving the Felton Fire District without being forced to join Cal County Services Area 48.
- The Board should assess the staffing needs for preserving a primarily-volunteer based staffing structure similar to Boulder Creek, Ben Lomond, and Zayante Fire Districts and Felton Fire District prior to 2022. It can then propose an alternative Benefit Assessment at a much lower cost. This option was advocated by Board member Erica Schwanbeck but rejected by a 4-1 vote.
- The District can propose turning over operations and Board oversight to Zayante, Ben Lomond, or Boulder Creek Fire Districts. It is likely that the other SLV fire districts will want full control of any takeover given the history of mismanagement of the Felton Fire District.
I recognize that the current staffing model for Felton Fire is not sustainable and needs to change in order to remain a viable service for the community. However, instead of the current proposed assessment, I support a more limited full-time staff similar to what was advocated by Director Erica Schwanbeck.
1 Felton Fire Protection District, Draft Community Handout: Defining the Problem, p. 2. Available at: https://feltonfireprotectiondistrict.app.box.com/s/rfwbzt67nu47nv171gv03l3m8fv2y00a/file/2005813218106
2 Local Agency Formation Commission, Felton Fire Protection District: Governance Options Analysis Report, p. 2. Available at: https://santacruzlafco.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Felton-FPD-Gov-Options-Rpt-7-25-25.pdf
3 Felton Fire Protection District. 218 Fire Assessment: A Sustainable Future. Power Point slides 4-6, available at; FFPD – 218 Fire Assessment Presentation v01.pdf | Powered by Box
Mark Smolley, Felton Resident
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