North Bend prefers EFR deal

Published 4:05 pm Thursday, October 2, 2008

North Bend City Council members plan to pursue renewing a contract with Eastside Fire and Rescue (EFR) rather than starting a stand-alone department or contracting with Snoqualmie for fire protection.

After comparing the anticipated cost of continuing to contract with EFR to four other options, council members decided that the potential savings of creating a stand-alone department were so small that the risk of alienating Fire District No. 38 wasn’t worth the hassle.

Though the council instructed staff to pursue contract negotiations with EFR, they plan to keep the alternatives as a fall-back plan in case EFR costs increase significantly more than expected.

“That still leaves us with all our options on the table so we can compare with what [EFR] offers,” Councilmember Jonathan Rosen said. “We’ll have choices.”

For the complete story, subscribe to the Valley Record, (425) 888-2311