Subscriber Comments for
Montecito Fire Budget

Comments in order of when they were received | (reverse order)

COMMENT 329751	2012-10-09 05:00 PM
Thank you so much for putting this information out. It has been confusing listening to comments from those who wish to join the board.
COMMENT 329873P	2012-10-10 07:18 AM
A change in the board is long overdue. Their arrogance and lack of accountability after the Tea Fire is legend, and many people were/have been forced off of their own property by the actions of the MFD.
FLICKA	2012-10-10 08:54 AM
How were they forced off their property? Would really like to read more as it sounds incredible. The election is about adding 2 more to the board, going from 3 to 5.
COMMENT 329921	2012-10-10 09:03 AM
Homeowners living in the areas to be covered by the new Station 3 ought to be very grateful to the District for the new fire station. When homes are built out in remote hillside areas for the views and privacy, people can't expect the existing fire stations to respond in a timely manner. Otherwise these folks should build their own wells and fire hoses and spray their homes with fire retardant chemicals to protect them. Of course, if you should have a heart attack way out in the boonies, God help you. P.S. The only way homes could be rebuilt after the Tea Fire was to comply with current building and fire access standards - in your own best interests.
COMMENT 330039P	2012-10-10 02:05 PM
Why does MFD need a $10 million third fire station to pick up heart attack victims? How about parking an ambulance on the roadway in a central position and letting it stay on call? That would be a cheaper, more efficient option. Why doesn't MFD own trucks that can service Montecito's streets instead of demanding the streets conform to the trucks? Why doesn't Montecito sell those big red parade trucks and buy less macho but more suitable trucks for Montecito's tiny road situation? And what it this financial mumbo-jumbo? A deficit means the expenses exceeded the revenues--period. It's pretty clear MFD needs alert experienced new fiscal managers. And finally, I sure hope MFD employees aren't responding to these election-based comments on company time, for that would be a violation of the law.
COMMENT 329921	2012-10-10 03:13 PM
039P should read the excellent explanation by the County concerning how deficits and revenues are accounted for: Maybe you can understand this analogy: if an attorney, a builder or business person incurs a lot of expenses throughout the month, he can't bill the client until the end of the month when all the expenses for that month have been compiled. So he may have a temporary deficit until his client pays the bill (and he gets "funded"). Why are you making a mountain out of mole hill - the funds have been set aside for a few years? What is harder to understand is why people still want to build in the mountains and the County still lets them despite the fire danger.
COMMENT 330039P	2012-10-10 04:39 PM
The MFD press release says the deficiency occurred because MFPD refinanced its CALPERS side fund. To do so, the District used a pension obligation bond which resulted in a net savings to the District of $162,779. Could someone explain what a CALPERS SIDE FUND is? If it was refinance and the savings was over $150K, which I assume was to reduce the interest rate spread, what is MFD's full debt and what does a side fund cover?

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