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07/27/2006: "Town Loss, County Gain: Low New Fire Marshal"

(Submitted photo)
Bob Low has resigned as the Friday Harbor Fire Chief to become the new San Juan County Fire Marshal. County and town firefighters, EMTs, friends and family came together on Wednesday for a barbeque to honor and thank Chief Low for his service to the community.

Chief Low's acceptance of the position comes after protracted efforts on the part of the County Council to fill the Fire Marshall position. With the adoption of the new International codes for construction, and the end of a contact between San Juan Fire District 3 to provide Fire Marshal services, the Council had moved to create a new contract for the position, and pass a new ordinance that created new fees that will provide funding. The problem was resolved after Interim County Administrator David Goldsmith was hired, and he was able to finalize a contract to provide the County with a Fire Marshall. ( Links to Past stories ).

The SJC Building Department had assumed the role in the past, but with the demands of the job, and the newly adopted codes -contrasted against the growing back-log of building permits (time to process has slipped from 8 weeks to now 12 weeks or more)- it became obvious that the time for a new approach to the state mandated position was necessary.