City interested in organizing firewise areas

    Often times we stroll over to our neighbors house to compliment their blooming flowers or ask for a cup of sugar - but the city council, along with two Chumstick Wildfire Coalition members, Corrine Hoffman and Ross Frank, and Dave Nalle, Chelan County Fire District No 3 Deputy Chief of Support Services and Prevention, came to talk about residents joining forces with those nearby neighbors for another reason. The crew assembled at the June 11 study session to discuss forming firewise areas.
    "It seems that firewise option works in smaller areas, in small communities. Where do you care about in your neighborhood?" Corrine Hoffman, Chumstick Wildfire Coalition Director. "So identifying those areas is the number one thing."
    Hoffman suggested establishing sub-communities within Leavenworth as the first step and later Ross Frank used the examples of the base of Tumwater Canyon, possibly Pine Street up to Ski Hill, Ski Hill to Ranger Road. Once the neighborhoods are divided into firewise areas then began outreach at the targeted communities. Defining jurisdictions within the city would fall into the city's realm of responsibility.
    "It is a community driven effort. It wouldn't be something that the city would do, but maybe partner with each neighborhood," said Hoffman.
    A firewise community can be either eight homes or 2500, said Hoffman. She suggested each community can form individual fire adapted efforts to mitigate the dangers in their area and then possibly have an overarching meeting set every few months to pull the communities together as a whole.
    "I like the small district because then too it doesn't necessarily have to stop at the city boundary which doesn't make sense because fire doesn't care where our jurisdiction ends, so based on what's your risk and what's around you and then collaborate with your neighbors with that specific risk," said Mia Bretz, council member.  
    Frank encouraged finding one or two resident spark plugs within each neighborhood to begin stirring their neighbors to be engaged in the firewise area.
    "They can help us sell their neighbors and bring together community meetings and start the discussion," said Frank. "There's a lot that the city can do, but more that the residents do, the better."
    The first step for the city to begin forming these areas is orchestrating a committee to tackle the plan and get the districts divided up.