Shoreline Fire District expands board

By Evan Smith
ShorelineAreaNews Politics Writer

The Shoreline Fire District is expanding its board from three members to five.
The three current commissioners will select the new commissioners from a among nine people who submitted applications by the Jan. 29 deadline. The board will decide how to screen and select the new members.

One of the new commissioners will serve until the 2011 election, the other until the 2013 election. At those elections, candidates can run for full six-year terms. Which appointee gets the longer term will be determined by a lot draw or coin toss. That means that District voters will choose two commissioners at each of the 2011 and 2013 election, and one at the 2015 election.

State law requires that when a District has only full time paid firefighters, it must have a five-member Board. Shoreline ended its volunteer program as of Jan. 1' so now as a full-time, career fire department, it must add two members to its board of commissioners. The number of volunteers had fallen to one or two by the end of 2009.

The Fire District serves the same area as the City of Shoreline although it is an independent agency.