By Mike Donahue

Moapa Valley Progress

After more than 18 months of unwarranted foot dragging, the Clark County Fire Department (CCFD) has finally advertised for bids to acquire much needed vehicles for volunteer fire stations in the Moapa Valley Fire District (MVFD).

Stacey Welling, county public information officer, acting as a spokesman for CCFD, said the county on Aug. 25 advertised for bids in a Las Vegas newspaper for two ambulances scheduled to be used in Logandale Station 73 and Moapa Station 72.

Welling said the ambulances are two of five vehicles on order to the county by the local fire district board. Three of the vehicles were requested in the spring of 2010 including one ambulance and two Type 6 Rescue Squads. Two other vehicles, an ambulance and a water tanker, were ordered in July 2011.

Although the county originally intended to seek bids in August on the three vehicles ordered in 2010, Welling said it changed its bidding schedule because of the additional equipment the board requested in its regular monthly meeting in July.

“It’s somewhat confusing but the county essentially decided that since it was already working on the specs for an ambulance (originally ordered in 2010), it would just double the request for bids which would help satisfy part of the MVWD board’s July order,” Welling said.

Now that the ambulances have been put out for bid, Welling said the county will seek bids on the two Type 6 squads this month (September) and then follow up with requests for bids on a water tanker.

Judy Metz, MVFD board member and Moapa Valley Town Advisory Town Board chairwoman, told the Progress she is often disappointed and frustrated by the lack of attention and assistance local requests are afforded by the county.

“It should be that once we identify a need and make the request, we should be able to get the equipment,” Metz said in an earlier Progress story. “The money is there, it’s ours (Moapa Valley Fire District’s) and we should get what we need as quickly as possible. We only ask them to do this one thing for us, because of the law. We do everything else for ourselves, from book keeping to everything else.”

The entire method by which local fire stations acquire needed equipment is often baffling to local residents. To make sense of the process it is necessary to understand the particulars of the Moapa Valley Fire District itself.

The special district was formed in 1964 to provide fire protection for the communities and residents inside its borders including Overton, Logandale, Moapa and Glendale. It is funded by a tax assessment on property inside the district.

The state collects the assessment on property tax bills paid by fire district residents and then returns that money to Clark County. By law, the county is supposed to bank it for use only in the special district. Shortly after the district was formed, county commissioners decided to allow the Clark County Fire Department to administer the funds.

A MVFD advisory board was established to oversee the needs of the district. That board today is made up of Charles Lindsay, board chairman; Metz, representing the Moapa Valley Town Board; Ann Schreiber, chairman of the Moapa Town Board, and the fire chiefs from each of the three stations in the district including Matt Nelson from Overton Station 74, Tim Deberardinis from Station 73 in Logandale and Ron Leachman from Station 72 in Moapa.

To get any equipment or to fund improvements to the three volunteer fire stations, the MVFD board essentially places an order to the CCFD which, according to Metz, is supposed to process the request.

CCFD is not an overseer of MVFD requests, Metz said. It is an administrator that is supposed to “fund our orders using our money.”

Metz’ has been the loudest of many voices locally decrying the fact that it has already taken more than 1 ½ years for the county to act on the equipment request originally made in the spring of 2010. Additionally, it may be another six to eight months or longer before any equipment is ever delivered to Moapa Valley fire stations.