FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 7, 2025
Contact: Justin Stockman, PIO
(408) 341-4444
CAMPBELL – With the conclusion of today’s LAFCO protest hearing before the Santa Clara County Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) Executive Officer, the proposed consolidation of the South Santa Clara County Fire District (SCFD) into the Santa Clara County Central Fire Protection District (County Fire) will proceed to the next step in the process. The LAFCO Executive Officer has 30 days following the conclusion of the protest hearing to assess the written protests submitted and make a determination. The transition is still expected to take effect as early as July 1, 2025, at which time County Fire will assume responsibility for fire protection and emergency medical services in the area currently served by the South Santa Clara County Fire District.
This milestone follows a 6-1 vote by LAFCO on April 2, 2025, to approve the fire district reorganization application, and a unanimous vote by the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors in January of this year to initiate the reorganization application. This reorganization ensures the sustainability of fire protection services in the areas served by SCFD and addresses longstanding fiscal challenges in the South Santa Clara County Fire District, including a multi-year structural budget deficit and lack of capacity to meet long-term facility, apparatus, and staffing needs.
Under the new structure, County Fire will deliver the same service level community members have received from SCFD, with the added enhancements of County Fire’s all-risk, all-hazards model, which includes a Type 1 Urban Search and Rescue Team and a Type 1 Hazardous Materials Team. Emergency response times are anticipated to improve, as Santa Clara County 9-1-1 Communications, which currently answers the 9-1-1 calls within the SCFD, will assume dispatching responsibilities in the area. This change reduces the existing call-transfers between public safety answering points and allows dispatchers to directly and immediately dispatch resources from County Fire in the current South Santa Clara County Fire District area.
The current area of the South County Fire District will be served by year-round, 24/7 staffing at the Masten and Treehaven fire stations, as well as at the Vineyard station, a new temporary fire station located at 16075 Vineyard Boulevard in Morgan Hill beginning July 1, 2025. County Fire will prioritize building a permanent fire station that is strategically located to provide optimal response times to emergency calls in the fire district’s expanded service area.
The CAL FIRE Pacheco Station, which currently provides year-round emergency response in SCFD’s Local Responsibility Area (LRA) along the Highway 152 Pacheco Pass corridor, as well as in a larger swath of State Responsibility Area (SRA), is anticipated to be staffed by CAL FIRE firefighters during declared fire season. The County of Santa Clara has been officially notified by CAL FIRE that the proposed Amador Agreement to continue year-round staffing at the CAL FIRE Pacheco Station with firefighters capable of providing Advanced Life Support (ALS) services has been rejected by CAL FIRE. With CAL FIRE’s denial of the Amador Agreement continued year-round fire protection and EMS response, including ALS services will be provided by Santa Clara County Fire Department.
County Fire looks forward to maintaining and strengthening existing partnerships and relationships within the South County community during the transitional period and beyond. South County residents and community members will benefit from access to a fully accredited fire agency with extensive capabilities, including a robust community education unit, fire prevention services, and vegetation management efforts through County Fire’s Pre-Fire Management and Wildfire Resilience unit.
County Fire will continue its leadership role throughout the County and the Region as the Operational Area and Regional Fire and Rescue Mutual Aid Coordinator. CAL FIRE’s Santa Clara Unit continues to have responsibility for wildfire protection and suppression in the SRA in Santa Clara County.
For more information about the transition and ongoing updates, visit www.sccfd.org/southcounty.
“As Fire Chief, I’m deeply grateful for the confidence placed in our department by the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors. Santa Clara County Fire Department leadership and its members look forward to extending our longstanding tradition of professional and courteous service to community members and businesses in San Martin and the surrounding area. County Fire has a long history of responsibly managing district funds, maintaining financial transparency, and is committed to ensuring district funds continue to be spent and invested responsibly with a goal to ensure the safety of every community for which we provide services. We look forward to continuing and building upon the strong public safety partnerships that contribute to the safety of the entire county.”
– Santa Clara County Fire Department Fire Chief Suwanna Kerdkaew
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