TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Last year there was a lot of tension in the administration building at the Mescal-J6 Fire District during board meetings. Several community members and board members walked out of one meeting last summer. During other meetings, several board members resigned.
Last year their former fire chief resigned. On his last day, two board members resigned and five days later another board member resigned.
Ed Nied is their new fire chief who started in August. One improvement he said they’ve made is involving the community more with their plans and being more transparent with them.
“Our new tagline is serving with relentless commitment,” Nied said. “We’ve been gaining, I think, some support, winning some trust back.”
The district is working on a community risk reduction plan, Nied said, to educate people about preventing fires.
“It’s important that we educate our folks as best we can,” he said.
To make their strategic plan, they had stakeholders and community members rank the district on priorities like response times, training, and staff. It’s something Nied said was a team effort.
On Thursday the board passed their five year plan. The day before they passed their draft budget. Nied said they’re prioritizing a new station with a community center.
“I want people to say I like what’s going on over there. I want to be a part of it,” he said.
Debi Wise is one of the two remaining board members since last year after several board members resigned. Last year the remaining board members couldn’t vote on a budget because they didn’t have enough members. Now, she said they’ve made drastic changes especially under their new chief, who she said has been supportive.
“Everything is smooth. We’ve impressed a lot of people,” Wise said. “The communication is open. The willingness to work together is there.”
They now have one full-time captain and two full-time firefighters, Nied said, along with reserves that fill in. Soon, he’s hoping to get even more firefighters.
“People see good things happening and I think they are starting to want to become part of it. That’s my dream,” he said.
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Andrew Christiansen is a reporter for KGUN 9. Before joining the team, Andrew reported in Corpus Christi, Texas for KRIS6 News, Action 10 News and guest reported in Spanish for Telemundo Corpus Christi. Share your story ideas with Andrew by emailing andrew.christiansen@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook, or Twitter.
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