Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Walla Walla Commissioners’ approval would put proposal on November ballot
WAITSBURG – The proposed annexation of the City of Waitsburg Fire Department into Walla Walla County Fire Protection District No. 2 is just one step away from making it to the voters. Walla Walla County Commissioners are slated to take action on the proposal Monday morning and will determine whether or not it makes the ballot.
The City of Waitsburg initiated the official annexation process when the council approved Ordinance 2015-1031, on June 17, which stated the city’s intent to annex.
The ordinance was the result of months of discussion between representatives from the City of Waitsburg, Walla Walla County Fire District No. 2, Columbia County Fire District No. 2, and the Waitsburg Ambulance Service. Dayton Fire Chief Rick Turner and Roger Ferris, from the Washington Fire Commissioner’s Association, also offered input in the negotiations.
The intent is that the Waitsburg City Fire Department and the Waitsburg Ambulance Service, which has been faced with financial hardships and a shortage of manpower, will both be annexed into Walla Walla Fire District No. 2. Because the WAS is a private entity, its annexation is not required to go before the voters.
On July 14, Walla Walla County Fire District No. 2 took the next step in the annexation process when they signed Resolution 2015-10, which states support of the city’s annexation into the district, and Resolution 2015-11 requesting that the proposition be included on the ballot in the Nov. 3, 2015 general election.
Walla Walla County Commissioners are scheduled to take action on the request at their regularly scheduled board meeting on Monday, July 27 at 9:30 a.m. Upon approval by the county commissioners, the resolution will be conveyed to the County Auditor’s office for inclusion on the ballot for the November election. The last date for such a resolution to be filed is August 4, 2015.
Should it make the ballot, voters in both the City of Waitsburg and in the Walla Walla County Fire District No. 2 will vote on the annexation.
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