Dos Palos city manager Dewayne Jones has a personal and vested interest in last Tuesday’s vote on Measure S, the special half-cent sales and use tax measure to fund local fire protection services.
City voters overwhelmingly passed the measure with an approval of 77 percent.
The measure needs two-thirds for passage.
Before he became city manager in 2022, Jones served as the city’s fire chief, heading the volunteer department for 26 years. Currently, the city does not only rely on the fire station located in the city’s downtown, but also another staffed station out at the Dos Palos Y.
However, because of budget constraints and new laws concerning minimum staffing numbers, the Merced County supervisors proposed consolidating fire stations throughout the county. The supervisors called for the elimination of staffing of the downtown station, a proposal that apparently did not sit well with Dos Palos city leaders as well as the community.
But with the passage of Measure S, both stations will continue to be staffed full time, as the revenue that will be collected is estimated to be up to $300,000 a year.
Both Jones and Dos Palos mayor Katy Miller expressed gratitude for what they both consider a critical public safety issue.
“Dos Palos really stepped up. The voters realized this is very important for the city and the community as a whole. This is something that the voters really wanted and really believed in,” said Jones.
“This is not just about fire, but also about insurance and city growth,” added Mayor Miller. “We will now have our first responders ready to go. If it didn’t pass, insurance on homes could be dropped or the cost increased.”
Jones added that this will also help with new development.
“Developers won’t want to come in if the homes they build cannot be insured,” he said.
