Final steps completed on annexing Meeks Bay Fire into North Tahoe Fire Protection District

NORTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - North Tahoe Fire Protection District (NTFPD) has provided fire protection and advanced life support services to the Lake Tahoe West Shore area of El Dorado County through a shared services agreement with the Meeks Bay Fire Protection District since 2014.

To officially make the agreement permanent, the final steps were completed this year - approval by both the El Dorado County and Placer County Board of Supervisors, and then the Placer County Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) gave their final blessing in August.

"This has been a very lengthy (years) process and is truly a benefit to our community," Edward Miller, longtime Meeks Bay Fire Protection District board president, said after the El Dorado County approval.

The annexation does mean he is out of a job though, but after 42 years on the board and all but two of them as president, he is ready for a break. Two other board members from Meeks Bay are seeking positions on the NTFPD board in the November election.

"The patch on the arm changes but the service remains the same," said Miller of the completed annexation.

The ten-year timeline of making Meeks Bay Fire a part of NTFPD:

2014 - The contract begins with NTFPD offering fire protection and advanced life support services to Meeks Bay Fire.
2016 - Employees of Meeks Bay Fire become employees of NTFPD. There was one last front office person at Meeks Bay and they waited until she retired.
2018 - Standards of Cover completed with the alternative model study leading to the decision to be one organization.
2021 - Both supervisor boards discussed the process and the last step was to get them to agree that it was a good idea to go forward with an annexation.
2024 - El Dorado County, Placer County, and Placer LAFCO agree to the annexation.

The annexation is effective January 1, 2025.

NTFPD Chief Steve Leighton said the two organizations have been operating with two budgets and two audits, and it wasn't as efficient as it should have been for taxpayers. Leighton has been the fire chief of Meeks Bay since 2020 and NTFPD since 2021.

Leighton says the following things are happening with the annexation:

El Dorado County wanted a fire station still in the area, so the Meeks Bay Fire Station will remain.

The tax rates will even out for North Lake Tahoe and Meeks Bay residents. North Lake Tahoe residents were paying $235 per parcel for fire protection and Meeks Bay residents were paying $270 per parcel. Meeks Bay property owners will now pay the smaller amount as well.

Since NTFPD faces a trim in revenue with the merger, El Dorado County will pay them a lump sum payment of $992,000 to provide financial assistance through the reorganization transition until full efficiencies can be achieved. El Dorado County will also pay up to $42,000 to NTFPD to assist with the payment of LAFCO’s fees and costs for processing the reorganization.

"We can right the ship," said Leighton. "See where we can cut the budget. Cost savings are coming."

There will remain two staff members on duty at the Meeks Bay Fire Station (now being renamed to a North Tahoe Fire Station).

"It's a great thing for the community, it's a great thing for our employees," said Leighton of the annexation. "We will continue providing excellent service."