On Tuesday, August 11, 2009, the county board approved a motion to reduce the amount approved wildfire sprinkler installers must set aside in escrow from $20,000 to $10,000.
A sprinkler review board, overseeing a grant to help homeowners install outdoor wildfire sprinklers, recommended the change.
On July 28, the county board failed—in a split vote—to pass the same motion. At that meeting Emergency Management Director Jim Wiinanen had asked whether he should be making this request to the Firewise Committee instead of the county board and was told that it was the county board’s call to make.
Commissioners Fritz Sobanja and Jan Hall had advocated discussing the recommendation with the Firewise Committee out of courtesy before approving the change and voted against the motion. Commissioner Bob Fenwick indicated that consulting the Firewise Committee was unnecessary because the committee has no authority to decide such matters and turned to Hall, saying he respected her position “whether it’s right or wrong.”
Commissioner Bruce Martinson also voted for the July 28 motion, but since Commissioner Jim Johnson was absent, the motion failed due to lack of a majority vote.
The Firewise Committee met in the two weeks between county board meetings and was notified of the sprinkler board’s recommendation.
At the county board’s August 11 meeting, Commissioner Hall wanted to clarify the matter by saying that the sprinkler review board is a subcommittee of the Firewise Committee.
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