Littleton Fire District To Merge With South Metro

LITTLETON, CO -- The Littleton Fire Protection District will dissolve and merge the South Metro Fire Rescue Fire Protection District, a notice from the Littleton City Manger said Friday. The board of the fire district announced they would end agreements with the cities of Littleton and Highlands Ranch and begin the merge Jan. 1, 2019.

“The governing Boards for Littleton Fire Protection District and South Metro Fire Rescue Fire Protection District have voted to approve a Memorandum of Understanding to create a consolidated fire protection district that will serve all the citizens and property in their respective service areas,” a statement from the two fire districts said.

City Manager Mark Relph said he was not surprised.

“We’ve been in discussion with our partners for more than a year to consider options that provide the best possible fire and emergency medical service to our citizens in the most cost-effective manner and we will continue to do so,” Relph added. “Our staff will do our best to ensure as smooth a transition as possible,” Relph added.

Plans are already underway to merge Littleton Fire Rescue (LFR) dispatch services with South Metro Fire Rescue’s MetCom, effective January 1, 2018 following city council approval of a four-year Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) on Oct. 17. This agreement covers only dispatch services for LFR, a statement from the city said. It is not an agreement to consolidate the fire departments.

The Littleton City Council, the LFPD and the Highlands Ranch Metro District boards have discussed service delivery options since August of 2016. The city council, at its Nov. 28 study session, will discuss how future fire and emergency medical services will be evaluated. The council and its fire partners will meet November 30 at the Littleton Museum to discuss next steps, the statement said.

The boundaries of the District surround Littleton on three sides: Wadsworth on the west, Chatfield Avenue on the south and Holly Street on the east, approximately 30 square miles. It owns stations 13, 14, 15 and one-third of station 16.

The Littleton Volunteer Fire Department began in 1890. The initial partnership with Littleton Fire Rescue began in 1948 with the Highlands Ranch Metro District joining in 1979, the district statement said.

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