The Oak Harbor fire department will expand its operations by hiring several new employees, some of whom will eventually staff a second fire station that is scheduled to be built in two years.
Last November, Oak Harbor voters approved two ballot measures supporting the fire department. A bond covers the costs of the land and construction of the new station, and a levy lid lift will fund the operating expenses of the station and the new employees to staff it.
The city of Oak Harbor recently purchased property on Swantown Avenue for $800,000 to build the second station. At last Wednesday’s city council workshop, Oak Harbor Fire Chief Ray Merrill estimated it will cost $700 per square foot to build the 7,100-7,300-square-foot station for a total of $4.9 million.
By 2025, a new lieutenant and six additional career firefighter positions will be hired to staff the new station. The construction schedule will determine timing for hiring new staff, Merrill said.
Currently, the department has nine career firefighters with salaries and benefits equaling $1,299,655 and 33 to 36 paid on-call firefighters with salaries totaling $669,826, he said. Paid on-call firefighters are paid less, have fewer benefits and cannot qualify for health insurance unless they work an average of more than 30 hours a week in one year.
“We have really relied and depended on our paid on-call for years and they have been an extremely cost-efficient way to do business,” Merrill said.
Merrill said two additional career firefighters will be hired by May 1 of this year to ease current understaffing. In 2025, money from the levy will fund a lieutenant position that is currently being funded by American Rescue Plan Act funds.
“Our commitment to the community was there would be a minimum of six firefighters on shift at any given time,” Merrill said, but added that this was still “running lean” compared to similar stations.
Councilmember Bryan Stucky asked if it would be a struggle to fill the new positions. Merrill said he anticipated no problems in hiring because all of the paid on-call firefighters are eligible to apply.
Mayor Pro Tem Tara Hizon encouraged members of the community to get involved in the paid on-call program.
“Paid, full-time, career firefighting positions are like unicorns,” she said, adding that the city having so many upcoming open positions was “almost unheard of.”
