Northern Lakes Fire asks community for mutual aid

HAYDEN — Northern Lakes Fire District is asking the public for mutual aid.  

During a sparsely attended town hall Tuesday at Fire Station No. 1, Fire Chief Pat Riley provided information on a proposed two-year levy on the Nov. 5 election ballot.  

“We levy an amount, we don’t set a rate.” Riley said. “We’re not the mafia, we can’t stop them at the gate and say, 'pay more.'”   

The Northern Lakes Fire District is proposing a two-year override levy to increase its base budget by $3.5 million per year.

A press release said the levy increase would allow the district to reduce response times, improve firefighter safety and ensure the community receives the highest level of fire and emergency medical services.

If approved, the proposed levy would result in a tax of $94 per $100,000 of taxable assessed value per year, the release said. It would replace an existing levy set to expire Sept. 30, 2025, which costs $62 per $100,000 of taxable assessed value.

Since the addition of the Coeur d’Alene Airport station in Hayden, the crews have been able to attain national standard response times, something that Riley feared wouldn’t continue if they lost staff.  

If the levy fails, the district faces severe setbacks, according to the release, which include laying off 12 firefighters, closing the Garwood fire station and increased homeowner insurance costs.

Homeowner insurance premiums are often directly affected by proximity to fire stations.  

During the meeting, a levy calculator demonstrated how a $700,000 home would require about $15 extra per month for fire and medical coverage.  

“You’re talking about two cups of coffee from Jitterz (Espresso), I’m for it,” Hayden resident Joshua Rhodes said.    

In 2023, the district beat out metropolitan fire districts nationally to receive a Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response grant to create additional firefighter/EMT positions since the number of firefighters the district received support for no longer matched the number needed for emergency calls across the growing population. The SAFER Grant expires March 2026.  

“A third of our fire department is going away,” Riley said. “If we revert, I can’t look the public in the eye.”   

Riley attributed the less than desirable turnout to the timing of the presidential debate, quipping that “we booked it first and then we got trumped by Trump and Harris,” before turning to the critical need the 12 firefighter positions and additional fire station that the levy would sustain for the district’s emergency coverage.   

The district covers a 108-square-mile area. 

In 2021, the Northern Lakes Fire District’s $2 million permanent override levy failed. It garnered 60.66% of the vote, but Idaho Code requires a supermajority of 66 2/3% for a permanent override levy to pass.

 "The public is not backing us and we need them," Riley said. "They are our mutual aid." 

There has been a 68% increase for Northern Lakes in emergency calls since 2013 and 52 firefighters/EMTs make up the three Northern Lakes crews.   

The agency responds to about 6,000 emergency calls annually out of three staffed stations in Hayden and Rathdrum and the surrounding area.    

Northern Lakes Deputy Fire Marshal Chris Larson said the third staff station at the airport has drastically expedited response times. 

“It creates survival rates where we've actually seen an increase in people who have survived cardiac arrest. If there's a trauma, they call it the golden hour. They want to be in the hospital and have the trauma surgeon in an hour,” Larson said. 

A levy calculator tool has been added to the fire district's website to help residents figure out how much they pay now and how much they would pay with the proposed levy.

The next fire levy town hall is scheduled for 6-7:30 p.m. Oct. 3 with the tentative location of Lakeland High School.