County supervisors agree with plan to close Cal Fire station at Dos Palos Wye

They can’t say County Supervisor Scott Silveira, who represents the West Side, did not put up a good fight and a reasonable argument on behalf of his constituents during Tuesday’s regular board meeting in Merced. 

Silveira passionately tried to convince his colleagues on the board to support the City of Dos Palos and surrounding unincorporated areas by providing county funding to keep two Cal Fire stations functioning in the downtown area and at the Dos Palos Wye near the intersection of Highways 152 and 33.  

“The answer is not to close either station,” Silveria said. “I get that money is always a challenge, but I want to remind everyone that our No. 1 job in county government is to provide for the health, welfare and safety of our citizens.

“One of the most underserved, unincorporated, disadvantatged communities, not only in our county, but in the state of Calfiornia, and the whole country, is South Dos Palos. … God forbid if something were to happen and we are waiting on an engine to come from Los Banos or El Nido.

“This is an investment. Work with Dos Palos. Dos Palos has a plan. … They have been willing partners of ours all throughout this. 

“I know there is money in the budget that can sustain it for this year. … They have committed to step up not only with what their tax measure brings in, but with additonal revenues over the next few years. 

“I think it’s the right thing to do. I think if we take the politics out of it. We take the emotions out of it. And we just look at the square miles that these stations have to cover — if we are truly tasked with the health, welfare and safety of our citizens — I don’t know how you cannot vote YES.” 

Silveira was clearly frustrated, appeared upset at times, and even called out “BS” at one point. Nevertheless, the Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 to close Station 75 at the Wye and merge its services with Station 76 in downtown Dos Palos. Supervisors Jim Pacheco, Daron McDaniel and Josh Pedrozo voted for the move, while Supervisors Lloyd Pareira and Silveira voted against it.

The decision was somewhat of a reversal because the county had originally planned to close Station 76 and merge services at the Wye. However, leaders appeared to listen to arguments that the downtown station handled more service calls and was centrally located to the most populated areas. The mayor of Dos Palos, Katy Reed, was also at the meeting and spoke up about the need to cover populations in the Midway and South Dos Palos communites of that region. 

How did we get here?

The much-talked-about idea of closing “full-time” Cal Fire stations in the region started in the spring of last year and the county ultimately decided to close four in order to streamline operations, reduce costs and meet new state Cal Fire staffing requirements. They included Station 85 on McKee Road in Merced, Station 96 in Livingston, Station 64 in Cressey, and Station 76 in Dos Palos. 

Later, the board approved cost-sharing agreements with the cities of Merced and Livingston. About $1.16 million was dedicated to fund fire services in Livingston through June 2026 with the understanding the city was financially able to take over its own fire service with the help of the recently passed Measure L — a voter-approved sales tax meaure projected to raise $2.3 million annually. With Merced, the county agreed to pay the city $315,000 annually, with a 4 percent inflationary projected cost, over two years, to provide primary fire and emergency service out of the McKee Station.  

With regard to Dos Palos, the closure and merger plans were temporarily put on hold back in December as the city mounted a special election for its own sales tax initiative to support fire services. Measure S — a half-cent measure —passed in early 2025. It is estimated to generate around $250,000 annually for fire services. However, county staff says the cost to maintain minimum staffing at the Dos Palos fire stations is $1.5 million.

It should be pointed out that the city of Dos Palos has about 6,000 residents, so the Measure S is much more limited than say the similar tax measure in Livingston with 15,000 residents. 

So one of the questions at Tuesday’s meeting was whether to use $1.3 million in “one-time” money that has been set aside in the county’s Fire Fund to keep both the Dos Palos stations going for another year. 

Silveira argued that the tax measure, along with new development in the Dos Palos area, new community facilities district funding, and other revenues would come along in the future. “Let’s work with them,” he urged his colleagues. 

However, Daron McDaniel argued that the county should stay consistent with its policies to not continuosly supplement fire service funding for an incorporated city. “They are supposed to be providing the services. … It doesn’t lean on the county to make up the shortfall.”

Silveira countered that the rural City of Gustine is paying nothing for its fire service coverage, only because they have a geographical advantage due to the county needing a presence in that part of the region. 

Board Chair Pedrozo pointed out that it would be unwise to use $1.3 million in a tight budget year where cuts to social service spending are expected to come down from the federal government, and the county may need stop-gap funding to keep up programs for the poor. “I think it is misleading to say there are funds available,” he said. “I apprciate the fact that they [Dos Palos] have worked hard to work with us, and I appreciate the fact  that they want to take a step-by-step approach as it comes to development, but there are no guaranteess that anything is going to happen in the next two, three, four, or five years.”

After the vote to merge Station 75 at the Wye with Station 76 in downtown Dos Palos, Supervisor Silveira had one last thing to say:

“This is frustrating. … Close one instead of the other. This decision should be postponed. We haven’t heard all the reasons … and all this needs to be vetted out. … It’s short-sighted in my opinion … on the fly like this without doing any research.”