SOLANA BEACH — The Solana Beach Fire Department is moving forward with a much-needed fire truck replacement using $1.7 million in funds from the city’s Measure S sales tax.
The new Pierce Enforcer 107-foot Aerial Truck will replace the department’s current Pierce Arrow truck from 2008. According to firefighters, it is past its recommended 15-year lifespan and has to be pulled out of service for repairs more and more frequently.
The Solana Beach City Council unanimously authorized the $1.7 million payment for the truck on Wednesday, spending around $454,000 less than originally budgeted. Those extra dollars will stay in the Asset Management Fund to be used for other equipment replacement.
It will be approximately four years before the truck is built and ready for service.
“By the time we get it, [the old truck] is gonna be 20 years old, which is very old for a truck that the community depends on,” said Solana Beach Fire Chief Josh Gordon.
Solana Beach voters approved the one-cent Measure S tax in 2022 as a new source of revenue for street maintenance, public safety services, and maintaining safe and clean public spaces like beaches and parks. In the upcoming year, the tax is expected to bring in around $4.6 million.
Measure S dollars also go toward other projects in the 2025 fiscal year. Along with the fire truck, the City Council approved allocations of $50,000 for an electric vehicle for the Parks and Recreation Department, $80,000 for the Highland Drive median project and $45,000 for the Santa Helena Neighborhood Project.
These purchases will leave approximately $1.9 million in Measure S funds for the 2025 fiscal year.
“I love to see our Measure S dollars at work. These are the things we promised the community that we would do with these funds, and it’s great to see that we’re doing them,” said Councilmember Jewel Edson.
The city was originally planning to purchase the truck next year after saving enough money over a three-year period. However, due to the long wait times for construction and a discount offered by truck manufacturer Pierce, the city opted to increase its annual allocation of Measure S funds this year to move ahead sooner.
New equipment
Pierce will build the new truck to meet the specific needs of the Solana Beach Fire Department. This will include a 100-foot ladder, which assists in cliff rescues and accessing multistory buildings, as well as equipment for technical rescue, ventilation, extrication, forcible entry and stabilization.
Pierce also built the station’s two current fire engines (fire engines are designed to specifically carry water while fire trucks carry ladders and other equipment.)
Gordon said the new truck will not only save the city money in the long run by eliminating the need for costly repairs but also keep the community and firefighters safer.
For example, Pierce’s new truck will feature a “clean cab” design, which stores equipment contaminated by carcinogens and other harmful substances away from the firefighters in the truck’s cab.
“We’re losing the health and wellness battle in the fire service. If we can take all that carcinogen-covered equipment and store it separate, away from our firefighters, that’s gonna help them,” Gordon said.
Councilmember Dave Zito said that in the future, he would like to see the city begin socking away asset replacement funds for new engines and trucks much earlier to avoid pulling from the General Fund, which Measure S is part of.
City Manager Alyssa Muto said the city is preparing to conduct a fleet conversion study to better understand what vehicles need to be replaced or converted to electric models to comply with state law. This will help the city determine how much it should budget per year.
“We’re really getting in front of it, as opposed to grabbing from the well for Measure S,” Muto said.
City officials said the city is also getting a head start on saving for a replacement fire engine, setting aside $313,000 annually for the next four years.
