From Bill Lindelof:
Three fire stations in the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District will close in an effort to cut into an $11 million budget shortfall.
The district's board of directors took action to close the stations Thursday night.
Metro Fire, which serves suburban communities surrounding Sacramento, relies on property tax revenue, which has plummeted due to decreasing property value.
The closures are estimated to save the district $4.5 million. To make up the remainder, the district is considering possible layoffs of non-firefighters, buyouts and leaving unfilled open positions created by retirement.
The nature of remaining cuts has not yet been determined, said district spokesman Capt. Christian Pebbles.
"That is all in negotiation with labor and management," said Pebbles. "You are probably going to see some people go. We are going to have to."
The stations -- 33, 64, and 102 -- would be closed until better economic times when re-opening would be evaluated again, said Pebbles. The stations could be closed in about a month.
Station 33 is on Main Avenue in Orangevale, Station 64 is on Vancouver Drive in the Rosemont area and Station 102 is on Marconi Avenue near Eastern Avenue, Pebbles said.
The good news, Pebbles said, is the district will maintain an average fire response time of seven minutes. Response time is how long it takes between dispatchers receiving a call and when firefighters arrive on scene.
"When times were good and property values were high, we got fat," said Pebbles. "Now that the money is not there, we are getting leaner."
Pebbles said the district has an obligation to the community to make cuts. He said it is not anticipated that firefighters would be laid off.
About a year ago, the district hired a consulting firm to look into what fire stations could be closed with the least impact on response time.
"These fire stations that will be closed were not just pulled out of a hat," said Pebbles. "It was a strategic decision. The stations were chosen based on the ability of neighboring stations to respond quickly and the three stations having lower call volume than other stations."
He said Sac Metro employees have given up negotiated pay raises. The district will continue to tighten its belt to make it through tough times, he said.
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