Oakdale wants Modesto to keep providing fire service. Yet another area could join in
The Oakdale City Council voted Monday night to have Modesto run its fire service for another five years.
The contract would run through June 2027 if the Modesto council endorses it, too. The current three-year agreement provides service to the Oakdale area through June 2022.
Modesto also runs the Ceres fire service under a five-year agreement that started in August. Turlock is looking into also contracting with the largest city in Stanislaus County.
Modesto’s reach could extend even farther. The board of the Stanislaus Consolidated Fire Protection District could vote on a contract Jan. 14. The district includes Riverbank, Empire, Waterford, east Modesto and large rural expanses.
Advocates say these partnerships reduce costs while improving responses to fires, traffic accidents, medical emergencies and other calls.
“If we were to do this on our own, these costs would be astronomically higher,” Oakdale City Manager Bryan Whitemyer said.
Modesto employs the previous Oakdale-area firefighters and handles training, fire prevention and other operations. The smaller entities retain ownership of their stations and firetrucks.
The contract approved 4-0 on Monday involves the city of Oakdale and the surrounding Oakdale Rural Fire Protection District. The latter agency’s board voted for it last month. The Modesto council has not scheduled a vote.
The new contract would staff the city of Oakdale fire stations on G Street and Willowood Drive and the rural district’s Knights Ferry station. The district also takes in the Valley Home area.
The payments to Modesto would total $5.63 million in the first year of the contract and rise to $6 million by the fifth. The city of Oakdale would pay 62.5% of the cost and the district the rest.
Local governments have contended for years with rising costs for fire services, including pensions. A paramedic shortage related to COVID-19 has compounded the issue.
“We’re going to continue these regionalization efforts that we think are best for everybody,” Modesto Division Chief Tim Tietjen told the Oakdale council.
Details were not available on Modesto’s proposed contract with Stanislaus Consolidated. That district was formed in the 1990s as a supposed solution to issues facing small departments, but it, too, has had financial issues.
