Deputy Chief Laura Hitt of Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue (TVF&R) presented a year‑end state‑of‑the‑district report to the Tigard City Council on May 20, emphasizing that roughly 70% of emergency responses in Tigard are medical calls.

Hitt described a two‑year pilot for an advanced practice community‑paramedic (APCP) unit intended to reduce nonessential emergency‑room transports from licensed care facilities by providing on‑site assessment and treatment with a paired nurse practitioner or physician assistant. TVF&R also participates in a regional nurse‑navigation telephone triage program designed to divert low‑acuity callers to appropriate resources instead of dispatching emergency responders.

Hitt reviewed operational data: TVF&R reported about 7,600 total incidents in Tigard in 2024 and deployed personnel to statewide and interstate wildland responses in 2024–25. She said the district sent 14 personnel to California in early 2025 as part of mutual‑aid and EMAC deployments and that Oregon sent support to the state during its 2024 fire season.

The deputy chief discussed recruitment and station modernization under the district’s recently approved local option levy. Voters in May 2024 approved a five‑year levy the district expects to sustain for up to 10 years; the package funds hiring 36 firefighters and paramedics over five years and supports upgrades to stations and training facilities. Hitt said station construction costs have risen sharply — where a facility once cost roughly $8–9 million, new builds are in the $14–15 million range — and she noted Station 35 in King City is undergoing a complete rebuild with demolition and site work planned this summer and completion expected by the end of next year.

Council members thanked TVF&R for a community academy and ride‑along experience and asked about calls in retirement and assisted‑living facilities; Hitt said congregate care sites can drive call volumes and the district is working with facilities to ensure appropriate use of emergency resources. Councilors also asked about response‑time planning and whether growth in Tigard and King City will require additional stations; Hitt said planners examine both distribution (station siting) and call volumes and noted that some high‑demand areas require added staffing at existing stations rather than immediate new station construction.

Hitt closed by noting the district’s recruitment and public outreach efforts, upgrades planned for several stations and the training campus, and the value of the levy to sustain staffing and response performance.