By Brooke Bryant
Contra Costa Times
Copyright 2007 Contra Costa Newspapers
All Rights Reserved
Orinda, Calif. — Orinda will be getting its own ambulance, thanks to a local developer.
Developer Orinda Gateway LCC will give the Moraga-Orinda Fire District $180,000 by Aug. 1 to buy an ambulance for Fire Station 45 on Orinda Way. It’s part of a deal to settle a disagreement between the district and the developer over the impact the Wilder development in Gateway Valley will have on fire service.
“We’re very happy with the way things turned out,” said Michael Olson, project manager for the planned 245-home development.
Gateway developers also have also agreed to pay the fire district $2,000 for each house built, money the district plans to use to staff and maintain the ambulance -- although the deal specifically says there are no restrictions on how that money is spent.
The agreement stems from a study that was supposed to determine what impact the new houses would have on the fire district in terms of increased demand for fire, rescue and emergency medical services.
The district was especially interested in the impacts associated with the development being outside the 1.5-mile district standard for maximum distance from a fire station.
The study -- required by the city and funded by the developer -- was finished last year, but Gateway and fire district officials couldn’t agree on the results. The study showed there would be an increased demand on emergency services over time, but extra property taxes would cover that cost once Wilder is built out, said City Manager Janet Keeter.
To resolve the disagreement, the district and developer talked about a peer review of the study, or commissioning a new set of studies -- but ultimately decided to hammer out an agreement on their own.
Councilman Tom McCormick questioned Olson closely about the deal at Tuesday’s City Council meeting.
“Mr. Olson, are you in the business of giving away $180,000?” McCormick asked. “I appreciate it. I think it’s a great gesture, but I want to make sure there was no arm twisting or anything inappropriate.”
“Well, there was nothing inappropriate,” Olson replied.
The agreement benefits the development because currently an ambulance has to come from Moraga, but with a new ambulance, he said, “when we are online with our first house, (the fire district) would be ready.”
“This was just a normal negotiation,” Olson said. “It went from them wanting a lot of money to us not wanting to give any, and we met in the middle.”
The first Wilder houses are slated to be built next year.