Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Safety Fire Department Facilities topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Mono City fire chief says town lacks apparatus space, seeks county help
Summary
David Swisher, chairman of the Mono City Fire Commissioners, told the Mono County Board of Supervisors that the department lacks a heated building and adequate storage for a 2,000-gallon water tender and aging apparatus and urged the board to consider assistance.
David Swisher, chairman of the Mono City Fire Commissioners, asked the Mono County Board of Supervisors on Jan. 2025 to consider assistance for additional fire apparatus and a building to house it, saying the department’s current station is too small and underfunded.
Swisher said the department’s station was reconstructed from an employee housing building built in the 1980s and “barely fits our current apparatus,” adding that crews “clear the doors by 1 inch when we come in.” He said Mono City acquired a 2,000-gallon water tender to address scarce water supplies in the Mono Basin, but the truck cannot be stored on-site in winter because the station lacks heated storage; he said he had to drain and ship the tender to Nevada for winter storage.
The fire chairman said the department is the lowest-funded in Mono County and gave a rough annual budget figure, saying “I believe it’s $32,000” and that, after paying utilities, insurance and workers’ compensation, the department is left with “$5,000 a year.” Swisher said Lee Vining Fire Department teams with Mono City on rescues and also needs upgraded facilities.
The board did not take immediate action during public comment. Supervisors thanked Swisher for attending; no formal direction or motion to allocate funds was recorded during the meeting. The transcript shows Swisher’s remarks were part of the public comment period rather than an agenda item.
The request highlights three distinct needs: vehicle and facility space that fit modern apparatus, a way to store water-tender equipment through winter, and materially larger annual operating support than current funding allows. Swisher said these needs affect joint response with Lee Vining and mutual-aid capacity.
Monetary figures and building history are drawn from Swisher’s remarks and were not supplemented with staff estimates or a county cost analysis during the meeting. If the supervisors seek project-level proposals or budgets, staff would need to return with specific cost estimates and options for where and how equipment storage could be provided or funded.
