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Observatory chosen by Neguse for funding

Mindy Leary
Posted 4/29/23

At approximately 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 19, 2023, Timberline Fire Protection District (TFPD) held their monthly board meeting at Station 3, located at 19126 Highway 119, Black Hawk.

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Observatory chosen by Neguse for funding

Posted

At approximately 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 19, 2023, Timberline Fire Protection District (TFPD) held their monthly board meeting at Station 3, located at 19126 Highway 119, Black Hawk.

President Rick Wenzel, Vice President John Bushey, Member at Large John Carder, Member at Large Whitney Donoghue, and Member at Large Mary Kate McKenna attended the meeting as well as Fire Chief Paul Ondr and Administrative Chief Jennifer Hinderman. Highlights of the meeting included the Observatory’s funding award, new fire engines, and the Chief’s Report.

Correspondence included a letter from Sheriff Kevin Armstrong, thanking TFPD for their help in responding to the school emergency on February 22, 2023. With no further discussion, the motion carried.

Public comment included a letter of thanks from a firefighter, Xander Lutz, who is taking a leave of absence but will return in November.

The Unaudited Financials from March 2023 revealed that the budget is on par with where it should be at this time of year.

New business included a response to Scott Griffith’s letter, received March 14, 2023, which the board will sign at a later time.

Old business included discussion on the FY24 Community Project Funding (CPF) program/Congressionally Districted Spending, and progress reports on Station 9 and Station 3.

Ondr explained they submitted a request for $1.6 million and that $900,000 will be awarded to finish the Observatory Station 3. Senator Joe Neguse accepted the project proposal, one of fifteen for this year. The funding is to construct a three-bay fire apparatus addition to be attached to the existing building.

This project includes an underground 300,000-gallon firefighting water cistern to quickly refill fire trucks during an incident, backup generator power, all necessary utilities, and fire sprinklers throughout to increase firefighter safety.

Station 9, Virginia Canyon, will have the roof done shortly, with garage doors being installed near the end of the month. There were three bids for the electrical work and generator needed, ranging from $22,000 to $39,000. The bathroom, septic, well, and heaters remain to be installed, which will all be completed by June of 2024.

TFPD has acquired three new fire engines which should be put into service the second week of June, with one already at the Observatory Station. The fire engines are designed by Pierce and the department expects them to be in service for the foreseeable future.

During the Chief’s report, Ondr reported that TFPD responded to 47 calls in March. Average response time districtwide was 11 minutes 3 seconds.

The gear that was contaminated during the train fire was reimbursed by their insurance and TFPD has been paid. The department is in the process of ordering replacement gear.

In Wildland/Mitigation news, Gilpin County has approved three mitigation projects. The brush truck is available for deployment and TFPD continues to assist with the Forest Service 359 prescribed fire.

In Administration news, TFPD is moving the paper archives from the attic at Station 5 to the file cabinets at Station 3. Chief Schimanskey has been going through more than fifty years of history and finding some very interesting items. Ondr hopes to have him read some of the files at each Board of Directors meeting.

Congressionally Directed Funding application for Station 3 bay addition was forwarded to Rep. Joe Neguse, and on May 30, the project will be submitted as his choice to the House Committee on Appropriations for funding in fiscal year 2024.

The Historic Preservation Grant was submitted and awards will be posted on May 1.

In Training news, Ondr would like to thank Johnny May in his continued efforts at organizing ice rescue training.

There will be joint wildfire training with Sugarloaf and Nederland in July.

Four Timberline members completed Nederland’s EMR course and are scheduled to take the exam soon.

Firefighters Tom Wojo and Mark Price both passed their EMR exams and are now certified EMR and EMT respectively.

Lieutenant Arendt attended a Live Fire Instructor course and is now qualified to teach others. This licensure adds an additional layer of safety, professionalism, and liability protection to the Training Division.

During public comment, the firefighters in attendance took the time to introduce themselves, led by Schimanskey, who has longest served Timberline. Then the board reciprocated by introducing themselves. The meeting was followed by Bushey’s famous banana bread.

Meeting adjourned at 6:48 p.m.

The next regular Board meeting for Timberline Fire Protection District will be held on Thursday May 25, 2023, at 6 p.m. at Fritz Peak building, 19126 Highway 119, Black Hawk.