> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.sandystandard.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # District desire for annexation hasn’t been extinguished. Sandy Fire Board to place measure on May 19 ballot for reconsideration - URL: https://www.sandystandard.com/district-desire-for-annexation-hasnt-been-extinguished-sandy-fire-board-to-place-measure-on-may-19-ballot-for-reconsideration/ - Published: 2026-03-01T22:46:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-07-20T21:46:35.000Z - Author: The Sandy Standard ***By Brit Allen, The Sandy Standard*** Last November, the Sandy Fire Board put a decision in front of the voters to decide whether Sandy Fire continues to independently contract with Clackamas Fire or is annexed into the Clackamas Fire District. “The people spoke, and they told us ‘no,’” said Sandy Fire Board Member Ron Lesowski. “(Maybe) We didn't tell our story correctly.” The measure was voted down by a narrow margin: only 174 votes. Now the Sandy Fire Board plans to put that ask before the voters again in the May 19 ballot, and are working now to better articulate the need for this change to the taxpayers. For the Sandy Fire District, the move to annex Sandy as part of Clackamas Fire is not only a cost-saving measure, but done in order to enhance service for the Sandy community. Clackamas Fire has been serving the Sandy community since 2020, first through an intergovernmental agreement then an operational contract. So, while they supply the apparatus and control the staffing of those serving Sandy, Sandy Fire district still exists independently. At the time the operational contract was signed in 2023, Sandy Fire District made the move because they saw a need for more boots on the ground in the area. And financially, they were not set up to meet those needs indefinitely. Further, the number of volunteer firefighters for many districts had seen a decrease at that time. So by contracting with Clackamas, they could boost the number of firefighters answering calls in Sandy, increase the amount of vehicles available to the community, and retain the same tax rate. “You used to send five people on a call and hope someone sent help,” said Clackamas Fire Board Member Chris Hawes. “Now we send 24 people.” “It's a huge boon to everyone who lives in the area,” added Lesowski. Since those needs only continue to increase, and with worse wildfire seasons forecasted in the future, Sandy has decided that the best move for the community and the district is to annex into Clackamas. "The community doesn't even still recognize fully that Clackamas fire district is their service provider,” said Clackamas Fire Chief Nick Browne. And while the contract between Sandy and Clackamas Fire districts isn't set to expire just yet, the Sandy Fire Board saw annexation now as a forward-thinking measure. Rather than continuing to pay to contract Clackamas Fire, Sandy Fire would prefer to merge, bringing their budgets under the same roof. Members of the Sandy Fire Board see annexing before the end of the contract as “proactive,” in case the contract isn't renewed by Clackamas Fire or in case the terms of a new contract make it such that Sandy Fire can't or won't want to renew. Not annexing could mean a more costly or scaled back contract with Clackamas in the future (to cut costs). “We all felt it was a very opportune time,” said Lesowski. “We have several years left on contract. We wanted enough time to react (to potential proposed contract changes). We sent the measure (in November) to increase the time to negotiate and decrease money thrown into contracting.” He added that while Sandy Fire has had decent growth, they haven't had enough to keep up with the increasing needs of the growing community. “We were too small to be big and too big to be small,” Lesowski explained, meaning Sandy Fire was too small to offer the same level of service as a larger district but had too large of a service area to not try to meet those needs. Annexation would mean a slight change to the tax rate in the Sandy area, but also a greater pool of firefighters and resources for that area to utilize. The current tax rate for Sandy Fire is $2.17 per $1,000 of assessed value. The tax rate if Sandy annexed into Clackamas Fire District would be $2.40 per $1,000 of assessed value. This would come after years of the tax rate not changing under Sandy Fire. It would also include a boost in services for the area from Clackamas Fire. According to Clackamas Fire leaders, their district has 4.5 times more wildfire capable rigs than Sandy, and Clackamas Fire District is the only municipal fire crew in Oregon to have a type 2 IA hand crew (this is just one level below the hot shot crews typically called out for large wildfire incidents). “We have the most wildfire capable apparatus outside of ODF,” said Browne. “And Clackamas Fire District has a commitment to growth and learning.” Through the contract, Clackamas Fire also took over administrative staffing and reallocated those dollars to pay for responding staff. “It's just the business,” Browne said. “But the business is saving lives and property. We've been able to dedicate all the volunteer Sandy and Clackamas staff to the Firwood station now for 26/30 nights a month. And summer partnerships between ODF and Clackamas also help staff the district during high-risk seasons.” For years, Clackamas and Sandy have had a mutual aid agreement, but the level of obligation Clackamas has to respond to Sandy area calls for mutual aid is different than its obligation would be if Sandy was annexed into the Clackamas Fire District. The result would be faster response times to calls in the Sandy area – if Sandy were merged into Clackamas. Under the contract with Clackamas Fire, Browne added, the response time for Sandy has improved. “Time is what saves lives,” he added. “Individually (as Sandy Fire) you can do good things, but as a team we can do great things.” “The contract allows us to follow National Standards to keep our firefighters safer and able to better serve,” added longtime Clackamas Fire Board Member Jim Syring. “This partnership makes us meet or exceed standards, provides more speciality apparatus and companies … in every case the service is better and people are happier.” Though annexation would mean there would no longer be a Sandy Fire Board, Sandy citizens can run to serve on the Clackamas Fire Board, for which three positions are expected to be open in spring 2027\.