Board approves energy-credit filing, CAL FIRE co-location, Riverstone fire station funding and several public-safety items

The Madera County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved a package of actions that the board and staff said will shore up public-safety operations, advance construction of a new fire station in the Riverstone area and enable the county to claim federal energy tax credits.

The measures were presented and voted on during the regular board meeting at the Madera County Government Center. Supervisors voted unanimously on each item that required formal board approval.

Why it matters: The approvals affect near-term county cash flow and near-term emergency response capability — including bringing a CAL FIRE engine into a newly built county facility in North Fork and locking a funding mechanism for a major new fire station in the Riverstone development. The items also include administrative authorizations that will let county departments obtain federal reimbursement and proceed with capital projects and planning studies.

Key votes and outcomes

- Energy-credit filing (Consent item 5E): The board approved proceeding with a county filing to claim credits under federal programs tied to recent projects. Staff corrected a typographical error in the agenda packet and said the correct figure in the backup is $1,085,000. The motion to approve (mover not specified on the record) passed 5-0. Supervisors voting yes: Poitras, Womhoff, Rogers, McCauley and Chair Sherry Gonzales.

- CAL FIRE co-location at Station 11 (Item 6I): The board approved an agreement with the State of California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) allowing a CAL FIRE engine to be housed in Madera County Fire Station 11 in North Fork and authorizing the chair to sign. The state engine will be stationed there year-round and the state agreed to provide replacement coverage if the engine is deployed elsewhere. Motion passed 5-0; yes votes from Poitras, Womhoff, Rogers, McCauley and Chair Gonzales.

- Pines Tract assessment district (Public hearing, Item 7/8): The board adopted a resolution to continue Assessment District No. 89-1 (Pines Tract, Bass Lake) to levy and collect ongoing road maintenance assessments. Staff reported the district includes about 562 parcels and a $100 annual parcel assessment; the homeowners association recommended approval. Motion passed 5-0.

- Riverstone Fire Station funding agreement (Item 6F): The board approved a funding agreement with Grove Land Development Corporation to construct the Riverstone fire station. Staff said impact fees collected from Riverstone and nearby parcels will fund the debt service and that about $4 million in fees are on deposit today; the developer will backstop any shortfall. Motion passed 5-0.

- Short-term rental fire-safety ordinance (Item 6G): The board adopted an urgency ordinance amending the county municipal code to restrict certain outdoor cooking and open-flame devices at short-term rentals (including prohibiting charcoal grills and guest-provided fire pits and requiring minimum clearance distances). The board waived the reading and passed the ordinance 5-0.

- Solicitation for a comprehensive public-safety needs analysis (Item 6H): The board authorized staff to prepare and publish a request for proposals (RFP) for a countywide public-safety needs analysis covering sheriff, fire, district attorney and probation impacts, and other infrastructure. Staff estimated an RFP development cost under $5,000 and consultant study costs could run in the low hundreds of thousands; the board approved soliciting bids 5-0.

- Behavioral Health unanticipated revenue (Item 6E): The board approved receipt and appropriation of federal mental-health services funds (item listed as 24-136) in the amount of $3,500,000 to expand professional and specialized services in fiscal year 2024–25. Motion passed 5-0.

- Extension and procurement approach for construction project management (Item 6J): The board chose Option 1, the existing staff-augmentation model, and authorized a short extension of the county’s construction engineering and management services agreement with Kitchell to avoid disruption while the county issues an RSQ (request for qualifications) and tests alternative delivery models. Motion passed 5-0.

- Groundwater and GSA items (Items 9A–9C): As the Board acting as GSA directors, the board directed release of an RFP for agricultural measurement and optional accounting platforms, adopted committee rules for the GSA, and adopted refinements to the privately owned groundwater flow-meter rule (including a 10-to-20-day late-data grace window and a two‑year calibration requirement with year-end compliance flexibility). The GSA voting items carried on unanimous votes.

What the board did not do: No item during the meeting adopted new taxes or fees beyond the assessment district continuation (which relies on existing assessments) and no item created new permanent county staff obligations without defined funding sources; several infrastructure items are funded by developers or identified impact fees.

Votes at a glance (formal tally summary)

- Multiple items approved on unanimous roll calls. For each roll call recorded in the transcript, supervisors voting “yes” were Supervisor Poitras, Supervisor Womhoff, Supervisor Rogers, Supervisor McCauley and Chair Sherry Gonzales. No recorded nays, abstentions or recusals on the items listed above.

Next steps: Several items require serial administrative steps: staff will complete the energy-credit IRS/financial-statement filing with county auditors, finalize the CAL FIRE co-location logistics and move an engine into Station 11 after minor telecom/communications work is finished, issue the RFPs for public-safety and groundwater services, and proceed with bonding and construction steps for the Riverstone station as impact-fee collections permit.