Firefighters fear goal of mold remediation is to close station in Chico

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A sign at Fire Station 5 on Dec. 13 warns of mold contamination. The station is in the middle of a mold remediation project.(Bill Husa/Staff Photo)

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CHICO -- A growing concern, however accurate or outlandish, is that the underlying goal of mold remediation at Fire Station 5 is to find a reason to close the station and use it as a tool to downsize the Fire Department.

"We are throwing out a conspiracy theory and hoping that it's wrong. But it seems like the more that goes on, the worse it gets," said firefighter Ken Campbell, a member of the firefighters' union.

The station is currently in the middle of a mold remediation project, for which the City Council allocated $25,000. At the direction of the Fire Chief Keith Carter, firefighters have been temporarily relocated to an on-site trailer so service to the area will be uninterrupted.

Firefighters believe some city officials have an agenda to downsize the Fire Department for budgetary savings and closing the fire station proves a tool to make that happen, Campbell said.

"Let's have an honest public discussion where everybody can have input and is apprised that this is the goal and asked is the public OK with this," he said. "We work for the public, and we work for the councilors under the direction of the public."

At Tuesday's City Council meeting, Public Works Director Ruben Martinez said the mold investigation has spread beyond its three initial areas and funding is being used for further investigation. The extent of necessary remediation is still unknown.

The major problem is a lack of communication, Campbell said.

With such lack of transparency, he said, a leading fear is the mold problem will reach the point where firefighters cannot use the station a concern echoed by Councilor Sean Morgan on Tuesday.

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Firefighters fear goal of mold remediation is to close station in Chico