12/04/2025
We are so excited that the new station is going up so quickly! This is going to be a game changer for Onion Creek and shortening response times to homes and wildfires.
We are sorry that it has taken so much time to get an update out. Honestly, most of us have been very busy catching up with life after the Crown Creek Fire and all the other fires we have had this year.
So, to give you all some background, this project has been in serious planning for four years. Our first step in this project was when we sold our substation in Northport. (We replaced that station with a building we are currently renting across the river from Northport, BTW.) the sale provided the funds to really get going on the planning and a search for the right location.
We studied maps, drove the creek endlessly, logging distances from our main station to the south end of the district and calculating distances up side roads. It took two years to find a piece of property in the right area.
That was when we hit a real roadblock... We only wanted a small section of the plot available (because of price and we did not want to waste the rest of the property). The Growth Management Plan said we couldn't buy less that a five acre lot. That's when Eric Johansson from the Stevens County Planning department and representative Shelley Short collaborated on our behalf and wrote a bill. It passed with probably the most bipartisan support the state has ever seen. That was great, but it delayed us almost another year.
Finally we were able to buy the property. This takes time as well... After the property was purchased, we had to work through all the details of going through the legal hoops a public entity has to to get bids and award the contract. Mind you, this is all being done in our spare time and with no financial compensation, while also working very hard to continually improve our service to our district.
So, now getting to the current status of the project... The funding for the project has come from three sources. First, the money from the sale of the property, second district funds from our levy(which we have been able to save quite a bit because of numerous grants that have covered most of our apparatus expenses), and third, from funds earned by our amazing wildfire crews who have served all over the state this summer.
I also need to say that we have saved a huge amount of money on the bid because Vaagen Brothers Lumber generously donated all of the dimensional lumber for the building, and Boise Cascade has donated all of the plywood! These companies have really made this project feasible.
And a big shout out to Sean Arnold, who provided all the dirt work for the site prep. He wouldn't even let us fill up his machines with fuel!
We are proud to share that we have partnered with the Stevens County Youth Outreach program as our contractor. I think that teaming up a volunteer fire department and an organization dedicated to providing training, mentorship, and income to our youth is just a wonderful thing! They are doing a great job!
The station will house four fire trucks: a main structure engine, a 1,500 gallon tender, and two wildland brush trucks.
This is just the first phase. We intend to add on in a few years and have a meeting/training room, a kitchen, bathrooms and showers, and bunk rooms for firefighters to staff the station at times of high fire danger.
This station is not replacing the original station at the north end of Onion Creek Rd. We will continue to use that as our main station. We would like to build a new building on that site in coming years, but when that happens will depend on funding.
Final note: we will respond to questions and comments, but we all work and have families and other commitments, so please be patient. Also, share the news and details. Our phone number is listed on our main page. Someone will get back to you, and maybe even answer the phone when you call. The email is also there, and you can message us through messenger, though that won't always get you a quick response.
