South County Fire outlines $ bond plan to replace stations, seeks November ballot placement

South County Fire officials told the Lynnwood City Council on July 15 that a proposed capital bond would finance replacement and seismic upgrades across the district, add four new stations and cover apparatus and support‑facility improvements.

Fire Chief Sean Maxwell and his staff presented the department's capital facilities assessment, which found that about two‑thirds of the RFA's 15 stations need replacement or major upgrades and that nearly half of stations could be inoperable following a major earthquake. Maxwell said the RFA serves roughly 57 square miles, runs about 40,000 calls per year and fields "over 350 firefighters" and paramedics.

James Curtis, deputy chief for logistics, described aging station conditions and operational constraints at Lynnwood stations 14 and 15, noting undersized sleeping quarters, insufficient decontamination and separations between living spaces and apparatus bays. He said prototype station concepts were used to scope replacement designs and that some prototype stations under construction are roughly 12,500 square feet.

Officials said the board voted to send a bond measure to the November ballot. Presenters gave homeowner cost examples: for a $600,000 home, the bond would add an estimated $9.70 per month (about $116.40 per year); for an $800,000 home, about $12.93 per month (about $155 per year), based on an estimated rate just over 19 cents per $1,000 of assessed value.

The bond package would replace six stations (including Lynnwood's Station 14), fund seismic and other upgrades at four additional stations (including Lynnwood Station 15), construct four new stations at planned infill locations (Alderwood Mall Parkway, Heights near Highway 99, Manor/Cascadian), and upgrade central supply and administrative facilities. Officials said some property has already been acquired for new sites and that heat‑map analyses guided siting decisions.

Council members asked about staffing and long‑term operating costs for new stations. Maxwell said the RFA plans incremental hiring tied to station openings, and that staffing costs were anticipated as part of a 10‑year organizational roadmap; board chair and commissioners acknowledged those operational costs would rise but said prototyping and phased issuances were intended to manage escalation and scheduling risks.

The presentation also addressed alternatives to costly ladder trucks—using squads and smaller vehicles for certain calls—and innovations such as telehealth in ambulances and a community paramedic program the RFA says cuts 911 calls and hospital visits by roughly half for clients it serves.

No formal action was taken at the work session; the presenters said voters will see the bond on the Nov. 3 ballot and that more information is available on the RFA website.