Several fire districts in Pierce County asking voters to approve levies on Aug. 4 ballots

LAKEWOOD, Wash. -- As fire season rages on, a total of seven fire districts in Pierce County are asking voters for some help on the Aug. 4 ballots.

One of those is West Pierce Fire & Rescue, which serves Lakewood and University Place. It is asking voters to approve a levy that would cost property owners $1.35 for every $1,000 of assessed value in 2016.

"It will help us continue to maintain all the resources we currently have so that we can continue to respond to our fire and EMS calls the same way we have in the past," West Pierce Chief Jim Sharp said.

With demand at an all-time high with brush fires being reported almost daily, Sharp said the levy would raise about $10 million and support 35 percent of its operating budget per year until 2019.

If the proposed levy fails, "We wouldn't be able to have as many resources on the street as we do today," Sharp said. "We wouldn't have as much funding to support our firefighters and what they do, so it would definitely mean cuts of some sort; that would impact the community directly."

This fire season, in particular, has been a busy one for local firefighters. The number of calls coming into his regional dispatch center in Lakewood are up by 8 percent.

"They're a lot busier. All of our neighboring fire districts are a lot busier, so we are all trying to help each other out whenever we can."

Sharp is hoping the public will come through for West Pierce Fire & Rescue, just as first-responders always do.