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Avra Valley Fire District History

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Avra Valley Fire District was established out of the needs of rural residents in the mid 1970’s.  In 1977, the District was formed to provide dedicated and caring professionals who safely serve the community of Avra Valley, Arizona, by protecting life and property through education, prevention, fire suppression and emergency medical services.   Avra Valley Fire District encompasses an area of approximately 325 square miles and provides ambulance coverage for 365 square miles.  The District straddles two counties, with two-thirds of the District within Pima County, and one-third in Pinal County.  The District serves an estimated population of approximately 11,500 residents. 

Our District maintains a high ISO rating of 3.  The District provides a wide range of dedicated services to its residential and commercial property owners, as well as services to locations and persons outside the District through automatic and mutual aid agreements.  In addition to fire protection, paramedic equipped units located in the District assist with advanced life support on medical calls and transportation services to hospitals.  Fire prevention and injury prevention education services are provided to persons residing within the District boundaries.  

The District operates under a five member Board of Directors.  The members of the Board are elected at large from within the District's boundaries for four-year terms and the officer positions are elected by the Board members every year for a one-year term.  The District is administered on a day-to-day basis by a Fire Chief.

Our District continues to certify, train and credential our personnel to the highest levels.  Our training program is built to the calendar year and is based on training necessary to meet NFPA standards in all disciplines, as well as EMS training to meet standards of the Arizona Department of Health.  Our fleet continues to be maintained according to ASE and NFPA standards. 

Avra Valley Fire District cooperates with the Arizona Forestry Service to provide fire suppression services through a Cooperative Agreement.  We continue to actively participate in wildland fire suppression throughout the Southwestern United States.  

Avra Valley Fire District operates under an adopted budget which is designed to advance our mission of providing optimum services to those who live, work, recreate and do business within Avra Valley. Our goal is to have a dynamic organization which provides the highest quality services to District residents and visitors in a cost effective manner.  The strategies used to construct the budget are focused on maintaining and enhancing frontline services that are plainly observable and directly beneficial to the community and to set a foundation for economic prosperity.  The budget is developed by analyzing financial conditions of the past, present and future.  The framework is established under guiding principles that place resources in the organization at sustainable levels to assure that the fundamental functions of the District's business are adequately delivered.  The budget is a legally balanced plan which provides frontline services to the community, eliminates non-priority items, pays obligations, provides for our employees,  provides for maintenance of District assets, seeks grant funding when possible, as well as funds the strategic reserve necessary to carry the District through future fiscal years.  As a Special District, Avra Valley Fire District is heavily reliant on property tax revenue to fund basic services.  The budget aligns resources to provide a strategic focus on front line service delivery.  As we move forward, we continue to focus on developing policy to ensure our fiscal solvency while ensuring that the provision of valued community services are enhanced.  The District has a five-year sustainable budget model. 

 

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