PORT LUDLOW — Commissioners of East Jefferson Fire Rescue and Port Ludlow Fire & Rescue each have unanimously approved resolutions supporting Proposition 1 on the Nov. 8 general election ballot that will ask voters in Port Ludlow if they want to merge with the East Jefferson Fire District based in Port Townsend.
The commissioners convened separately but simultaneously in a special meeting that was held online Monday. The resolution was the only agenda item and no member of the public spoke during the comment period.
A simple majority of voters in Port Ludlow need to approve the merger, which would result in Port Ludlow Fire & Rescue being absorbed into East Jefferson Fire Rescue.
Three informational meetings on the proposed fire district merger are scheduled at the Port Ludlow Marina Tent, and more are being planned.
Planned so far are meetings on:
• Monday, Oct. 3, at 9:30 a.m.
• Tuesday, Oct. 4, at 4 p.m.
• Wednesday, Oct. 5, at 7 p.m.
If the ballot measure fails, Port Ludlow Fire & Rescue would continue operating under an interlocal agreement with East Jefferson that has been in place since May 2021; the agreement was extended to May 23, 2023, in case voters turned down the merger.
Port Ludlow Fire & Rescue approached East Jefferson earlier this year about the possibility of merging, and commissioners from both districts voted in July to place a proposition on the November ballot.
According to the fire districts, merging would result in cost efficiencies and improved services.
Merging the two fire districts is a continuation of a trend started in 2005, when Jefferson County Fire District 6 merged with Fire District 1, and in 2019, when the City of Port Townsend was annexed into Jefferson County Fire District 1.
________
Reporter Paula Hunt can be reached at paula.hunt@soundpublishing.com.
