Officials from the financially-challenged Rough and Ready Fire Department told residents at a Town Hall meeting Wednesday night that they expect to run out of money by June. And the future has three scenarios: they either dissolve, consolidate with Penn Valley, or contract themselves out to other departments. The president of the Penn Valley District Board, Bruce Stephenson, says Rough and Ready is nearly three-hundred-thousand-dollars short of annual operating expenses, which are 750-thousand…

click to listen to Bruce Stephenson

Stephenson says 500-thousand dollars a year would still be needed for a fully-operational consolidated district. But the only way that can happen is if Nevada County provides a larger property tax share allocation. And discussions with county supervisors and other officials continue…

click to listen to Bruce Stephenson

Meanwhile, another Town Hall meeting, this time at the Penn Valley Fire District building, is scheduled for March 8th.