Residents from rural Mitchell have a conundrum on their hands, and it's one that will require attention sooner rather than later.
The question for the members of the Mitchell Rural Fire Association is this: Should the association continue its current and sometimes trying process of paying for city fire protection, or should it form a state-recognized rural fire protection district so it can impose taxes to pay for city fire services?
At present, the association's contract with the city calls for an annual fee of $5,000. In addition, the association is required to purchase a new grass fire rig, which likely will cost in the neighborhood of $60,000. The association hasn't yet purchased a grass rig, and had to be sternly reminded by the City Council to pay last year's annual fee as 2008 came to a close.
A meeting Saturday brought together a dozen residents from the association, which covers parts or all of seven townships around Mitchell in Davison County. At the meeting, attendees discussed the merits of forming a rural fire protection district.
We think this deserves serious consideration.
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The chief benefit of forming a state-recognized district would be that the district would be able to levy taxes to pay for fire protection, a process that is much more sound than the association's present methods.
So many facets of the Mitchell Rural Fire Association are a mystery.
First, the association's true official status currently is unknown. Some say it's a nonprofit organization, although papers that prove it cannot be found, and a search by The Daily Republic to determine the group's nonprofit status turned up no verifying evidence.
Even the association's fundraising methods appear inconsistent. Money has, at times, come from townships, although it doesn't appear that still is so. We also know that landowners who have fires on their land are charged $500, but it's uncertain how many of those bills have been collected.
We know this: $5,000 a year for professional fire protection for an area with a population of some 2,000, and which covers up to 140 square miles, is cheap. Ridiculously cheap.
Simply changing the status of the association to a state-recognized fire protection district would remedy all of the fire-protection uncertainties that residents in this rural section of Davison County now face.
We feel it's the way to go.
