New Vermillion Cliffs Special Service District forms, appoints chair and approves Kanab City fire-response contract after removing new-growth fee

The newly formed Vermillion Cliffs Special Service District held its organizational meeting June 10 at the County Administrative Building and took a series of administrative and operational steps to begin providing structural fire response to areas east of Kanab.

Acting Chair opened the meeting and the board first adopted the county's published rules of procedure and order to guide operations going forward. A board member moved to appoint Gwen Brown as board chair; the motion carried unanimously and Brown assumed the gavel.

The board then considered a proposed structural fire-response service contract with Kanab City. Board members described a two-year agreement with a 6% annual contract increase and said both sides had negotiated terms for months. Legal counsel told the board that collecting a separate one-time "new-growth" or impact fee directly from new residents would be difficult and could expose the district to litigation. "We do not have a way to collect that," a board member said, summarizing counsel's advice.

After discussion of collection mechanics, timing and fairness to existing residents, the board voted to approve the contract with Kanab City with the new-growth clause removed. The chair said the city would still receive recurring revenue under the contract and urged Kanab City to consider the district's clean copy of the agreement at its meeting that evening. Board members emphasized they would give the city advance notice so the city could review the revised document.

Separately, the board voted to use county professional staff initially to provide administrative services (attorney, treasurer, government affairs and billing), relying on a county schedule of fees. That decision is contingent on the willingness and availability of county offices and departments to provide those services.

The board set a public hearing to adopt a budget and fee schedule, agreeing that the budget hearing and the fee-structure hearing should be combined when feasible; members noted public-notice rules require at least seven days' notice and that newspaper or other posting requirements might affect timing.

For ongoing governance the board established a regular meeting schedule: the first Wednesday of each month at 10:00 a.m. at the County Administrative Building, 76 North Main Street.

Looking ahead, board members discussed planning and capital needs to develop local capacity: identifying land for a station (lease or purchase), preparing shovel-ready plans for Community Impact Board (CIB) grant or loan applications, sourcing donated or lower-cost apparatus and recruiting and training volunteer firefighters. The board noted the county's new volunteer coordinator, Jana Corey, as a resource for organizing training and volunteer integration.

The meeting closed after members confirmed recordation steps with the lieutenant governor's office and county recorder; the board adjourned by unanimous voice vote.

What happens next: the district will send the revised contract to Kanab City for its consideration, schedule the public hearing for budget and fees consistent with notice rules, and continue planning for station siting, grant applications and volunteer recruitment.