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Mike Pearson called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm

Attending: Mike Pearson, Joyce Dierking, Natalie Williams, Gunner Gibson, and Pam Lee (via Phone)

Also Attending: Lyle Neville (Fire Chief), Bob Jones (Financial Officer), and 3 other Community Members; 2 additional community members came in late to the meeting. 

Approval of Aug Minutes: Motioned to approve made by Joyce, Natalie seconded the motion, all voted to yes to approve.

Additions to the agenda: Discussion about the shared fence line for the property on First Street will be added to the Chief’s Report from Lyle. No other items added.

Financial Report: Bob asked if the Board wanted to review ahead of time and approve or continue to review as a group at the meeting. All favored going over financials during the meeting. No major changes with income or general expenses. Larger expenses included the first installment for the septic installation and insurance. Transferred a large portion from LGIP fund to cover expenses. Natalie made a motion to approve, Gunner seconded the motion. All voted yes to approve the financial report.
Additionally noted: Natalie will be added to the LGIP account for viewing access as the new Secretary/Treasurer. 

Chief Report: Lyle handed out a copy of his full report to each Board member and community members, he reviewed each item on the report with the group. Additionally, he added information regarding a shared fence line for the property at Lot 600 on 1st Street owned by the PRFPD and Lot 601 owned by McCord Ventures LLC. His proposal was to share the expenses for the cost of installing the fence, which would allow both parties equal input for the design and functionality of the fence. Another addition added to the discussion was about the difficulty obtaining fuel locally; possible solutions are to work with the local ODOT fuel site or look at obtaining a Commercial Fuel Account (CFN, Pacific Pride, etc.). Lyle announced that October 17th will be the 2nd Community Clean Up Day. Formulating a plan to help our Prospect Community get word out in the event of an emergency or crisis that could impact residents. Fuel Reduction will continue after fire season is over, but they are already making a list of community members who may need firewood for the winter, which they will provide at no cost. Lyle invited the Board Members to put their initials in the concrete behind the fire station after the meeting tonight. Bob asked about volunteer numbers: Currently have 23 total Volunteers; when Lyle started around 8 years ago as a volunteer, we had 4 Responding Volunteers. Huge improvement. Lyle covered the construction update on Station One.

Krisinda Gibson updated the Board that Pacific Power approved a $5,000 Grant to help with getting the Hydrant system up and running, there is a meeting this coming Friday at 10am to discuss details at Station 1, if anyone is interested in attending. Other Grants are being sourced out to help with further expenses of the Hydrant system.

Krisinda Gibson gave an update on the future station. Spent some time talking to Jackson County, asking questions and getting clarifications on what can or cannot be done with the property. Will set up a future appointment with Jackson County to start planning out some details. Also seeking out potential Grants to help with the property development, but it will be a slow process to get everything fulling moving forward. 

Natalie gave an update on the Levy successes since passing; ideas on how to promote publicly to the community; and suggested an annual update to keep the information fresh.

Public Comment: Mike in public comment mode – he had compared other Fire Dept chief pay for Oregon average, we are “underpaying” Lyle according to the information. Bob noted that no changes are set to happen regarding payroll. Spencer noted that Lyle is paid for 2 days a week and the other days he works as a volunteer above and beyond. Krisinda is thankful for the Board approving the Water Tender purchase, which has already provided mutual aid. Lyle made a comment about response times are as good as we have ever been. Volunteers may go on a call personally without going to the station first if they are close by, which happened with the call complained about on social media by a community member. We have a great relationship with Fire District #4, and they are always willing to help but due to the number of volunteers and quicker response times, we have not needed their assistance as often as we have in the past. Kathleen mentioned how our dept has made a difference even in other communities while providing mutual aid. Spencer mentioned that the fuel reduction efforts are substantial in comparison to other Oregon fire departments.

Adjourn: Joyce motioned to adjourn, Pam seconded the motion. Meeting adjourned 7:00PM.