Prop L and Prop F both passed Tuesday night, representing the culmination of over a decade of efforts from the Warrenton Fire Protection District to ask voters for much-needed funding.
This item is available in full to subscribers.
We have recently launched a new and improved website. To continue reading, you will need to either log into your subscriber account, or purchase a new subscription.
If you are a digital subscriber with an active subscription, or you are a print subscriber who had access to our previous wesbite, then you already have an account here. Just reset your password if you have not yet logged in to your account on this new site.
If you are a current print subscriber and did not have a user account on our previous website, you can set up a free website account by clicking here.
Otherwise, click here to view your options for subscribing.
Please log in to continue |
Prop L and Prop F both passed Tuesday night, representing the culmination of over a decade of efforts from the Warrenton Fire Protection District to ask voters for much-needed funding.
“I feel great about that,” said WFPD Chief Anthony Hayeslip. “It was a lot of hard work from everyone in our organization and the community as a whole.”
Prop F passed with 1,654 votes (64.63%) to 913 (35.57%), while Prop L surpassed the required four-sevenths majority with 1,720 votes (67.14%) in support compared to 842 (32.86%).
Proposition Life Saving Equipment is a $10-million bond issue that Hayeslip said will be used to pay for needed capital improvements like a new fire truck and other equipment.
Proposition Fire Safety is a 25-cent tax increase that will be used to shore up the district’s dwindling reserves and provide the funds necessary to bring on additional firefighters and staff Station 1 around the clock, according to Hayeslip.
“It sets us up to add more staffing,” said Hayeslip. “It doubles our workforce.”
This was the district’s 14th attempt at passing ballot measures in the past 11 years and Hayeslip felt their recent efforts improving transparency had a significant impact on their success.
“I think the difference maker was our continued effort on transparency and our continued effort on engaging with the community,” said Hayeslip.
Hayeslip said the district has been in dire need of additional funding especially as the county’s population and call volumes continue to increase.
“It’s gonna be a monumental impact,” said Hayeslip.
While both measures passed, it will be some time before their impact is felt in the district. The tax increase will not take effect until January 2026 and Hayeslip said he expected the bonding process to take 60 to 90 days.
Hayeslip said regardless of the results of the April 8 election, the district was going to start the process of purchasing a new fire truck. That process can take up to three years.
He continued, saying while the bonding process is underway he will be dividing his staff into teams to prepare bid materials for projects like improvements to Station 1 so they are ready when the time comes.
Hayeslip ended by saying he remained committed to their transparency efforts, and there would be no changes on that front just because the district finally garnered voter support after so many near-misses..
“We will keep (the community) abreast on everything we do with their tax dollars,” said Hayeslip.
